Blame Lovecraft! It's all her fault......I'm no longer sure where in the Anita timeline this fits- somewhere between Killing Dance and Obsidian Butterfly.
Anita Blake & the cast of Vampire Hunter belong to Laurell K. Hamilton. Jubilee and Angelo belong to Marvel. Praise will be luxuriously bathed in, flames will be used to make smores. Onwards!
This chapter is for Lovecraft....who really really wanted Richard to get what he deserves.....
Otherside
I'm waiting at the Greyhound station for my cousin and his girlfriend, and trying to convince my 'bodyguard' to be a little more inconspicious. It took three weeks to make the travel arrangements for Angelo and Jubilee, mostly because I refused Jean-Claude's help. I like to do things on my own. It annoys him to end, which makes it even more fun. In that time, Angelo raised a baby bird that had fallen out of its nest onto their balcony, one of Jubilee's fish that died in the night, and a roadkill racoon.
"Zane, do you mind?" As usual, he looks like sex-on-legs in a fishnet shirt and tight leather pants. I'm pretty sure he's not wearing any underwear. "Couldn't you have at least worn a sweatshirt or a coat? We don't want to scare Angelo. He's family, be nice."
Zane's face slowly slides into a sultry smirk. "I don't know what you're talking about, Anita. I'm always very, very good." He licks his lips slowly, flicking his tounge at me. "You just never let me be as good as I can be."
"Why, oh why, must all were-animals I work with be sex maniacs?" I lift my eyes skyward. "Lord, why do you keep surrounding me horny vampires and insatiable weres?"
"God wants you to be happy. He's giving you lots of willing partners. He's going to get upset if you don't accept His gift and get laid more often." Zane puts in dryly. "Is that their bus?"
I take off across the terminal as the California line pulls up to a gas pump. "C'mon Zane, move that butt." He gives me another lewd grin, but I ignore him and head towards the bus. We hang about ten feet back from the disembarking passengers. I don't know how I'm going to recognize Angelo, I haven't seen him in about five years. I scan the people coming out of the bus, and silently swear. About half of them could be Angelo. After five minuets of hopefully looking for a familiar face, I realize I lost Zane. I backtrack, and find him watching a cluster of people by the back of the bus.
"Niiiiiiiiiiice....." Zane is leering at something, and it takes me a moment to pinpoint his target. A woman is leaning against the bus, eyeing Zane just over the edge of her sunglasses. He gives her a saucy wink, and she lets out a low whistle and fans herself.
"Zane, stop it."
"She's cute!" He grins at her. "If you won't let me play with you, why can't I play with her?"
"Because we're here to pick up Angelo and Jubilee, not to find you a playmate." He keeps watching her, and I poke him. "Zane! Not now."
"You're my Nimir-Ra, Anita. My packleader, even though you are human and not a were-leopard. That does not mean you are my mother." He throws the girl another smile, and she smirks. "Let me get her phone number, then we'll find your baby cousin." Zane flows toward her, and I throw up my hands and walk away, trying to spot Angelo. Zane leans next to her, and I can hear her laugh faintly. I know that laugh. Shit. My head snaps back to them, and I take my first real look at her. Short, punky black hair, clinging black leather coat, leather pants, combat boots, and when she removes the glasses I see startling blue eyes set in a Chinese face. Jubilee.
"Zane!" He lazily looks up at me, and growls slightly. Jubilee's expression changes from one of flirtation to suspicion, and I know she heard his growl. I see a hand slide under her coat and behind her back. "Zane, is that anyway to treat our guests?"
"You are....?" Her arm movement pauses, as she regards me. Smart girl, she's making me identify myself, not giving away who she's waiting for.
"Anita Blake, you must be Jubilee. This sex-oozing specimen of the male gender is Zane. Don't pull the knife you have your hand on, he'd like it too much."
"Dios." A young man moves behind her, setting down two suitcases and a steamer trunk. "I can't leave you alone for a second." He shakes his head. "I'm sorry, she's not housebroken yet. No manners."
She hits him, and Zane and I exchange looks.
"Who are you?" I eye him, puzzled. He looks *nothing* like Angelo. Tall, brown hair, blue eyes.
"Tu primo, Angelo." He grins at me. "Image inducer. My mutation makes it so that I can't be seen in public without freaking out the normals."
"Oh." I'm not sure how to respond to that. "Couldn't you program it to make you look more like you?"
"Yeah, but then what's the point of trying to keep my cover? If people saw Angelo Espinoza leaving LA, I might as well have signed up for the Animator registration program under my real name."
"He's got a point." Zane's voice rumbles in my ear. He's still watching Jubilee. She's still watching him through narrowed (unfriendly) eyes.
"Zane, stop mentally undressing Jubilee. Wait until we get in the car for that, you're making the old ladies nervous. Jubilee, stop thinking about where to stick the knife. He's a were-leopard, not a vamp. You don't get to kill him just for hitting on you, and he's more than a little bit of a masochist. Slicing him up will only encourage him, trust me." She nods, finally letting go of the sharp thing she's got hidden somewhere in all that form-fitting leather. I have a sinking suspicion that Jubilation Lee is going to appeal to the pard. And to Jason. And the vampires. Damn. "We're going to the Circus of the Damned. Fair warning- it's a vampire business with lots of other bogeymen hanging around. If you're too tired to deal with the undead after your bus ride, speak now and I'll drop you at the hotel."
"But I like mentally undressing her. She's yummy, she's wearing leather, and she has knives." Zane is practically drooling. Angelo looks like he doesn't know whether to laugh or deck him.
"Oooohhhh....I feel so dirty and used." Jubilee just smiles, leaning in closer to Zane. I feel like I should warn him off, but this looks too interesting. "Oh, don't worry Anita. I'm up for *anything* right now." Her voice is slightly breathy as she eyes Zane. He's practically purring. Then there's a quick spark, and Zane jumps back, rubbing his nose. "Oh...... must have been static electricity. How sad." She simpers at Zane as he sulks, holding his face. "Bad kitty."
"Jubicita....." Angelo sighs, lifting the steamer trunk. "Be nice to Anita's friends, okay?"
"The jeep's over here. Let's get going, the night is still young." Jubilee quickly grabbed one of the suitcases and followed me, leaving Zane to grab the other one and trail after. Somehow I already know it's going to be a loooooong night.....
***
Somehow we managed to arrive at the Circus without further incident. I made Zane sit in the front with me, and Jubilee kept wiggling her fingers at him in the rearview mirror for the entire ride.
***
"What do you mean I can't see Jean-Claude right now?" I took a deep breath and started to count to ten while staring down Jason. "I am not in the mood to be jerked around."
Jason shrugged, not moving from his spot on the couch. "He's fighting with Richard right now. You want to interrupt him, go ahead. Richard will just snap your head off and accuse you of siding with the walking corpse."
"Damn." I thump down next to Jason. "Damn damn damn."
"Why are we here?" Angelo was sitting in another couch, with Jubilee nestled in his arms. "Why don't you just dump me with one of your co-workers to start my 'lessons'?"
"Because I want both Jean-Claude and Richard to get a good look at both of you. Our family has a knack for finding trouble, Angelo, and I'm willing to bet Jubilee is pretty good at it too. I want to avoid any unnecessary problems."
Jubilee raises her head from Ange's shoulder to look at me sleepily. "No problems. Got it."
Angelo chuckles, twisting his fingers in her hair. "Who's definition of trouble, Jubicita? Your's or Anita's?"
"Mine. I never get in trouble. Just interesting situations." With that, she buried her head Angelo's neck and curled up against him. "Wake me when something happens."
Jason laughed cynically, it was not a pretty sound. "Never say something like that around here, Miss Lee. You'll jinx all of us."
That's when the door to Jean-Claude's office flew open.
Jamil and Richard came stalking out, and I felt my heart leap into my throat when I felt Richard's power coil around me in recognition. He turned to me, eyes golden in his anger. "What do you want here, Anita."
"Ma chere has a right to be here if she chooses, the Circus is always open to her." Jean-Claude glides out of the room, silently shadowed by Asher. He's wearing one of his silk shirts that opens all the way down the chest, and I will myself not to start drooling. "Anita, ma chere." He kisses the back of my hand, and I sense Richard tense. "Is our date still on for tomorrow evening? Don't tell me you're here to cancel!"
"Stop teasing Richard, Jean-Claude. I brought my cousin, Angelo, and his friend Jubilee. They're staying here in St Louis. Angelo's started raising the dead, so he's here to get some training. Take a good look, boys, neither of them are food." I gesture behind me to the couple on the couch, only when I turn around, they're no longer cuddled together.
Jubilee stands behind the left arm, her hands held lightly at her sides and a strange fire crackling in her eyes. Angelo is reclining against the couch, with one hand on Jubilee's wrist. "Buenos noches, senores."
"Amazing!" Jean-Claude takes a few steps toward them, his face alight. "Such strange power I can feel from them!" He smiles, closing on the couch. "Intriguing eyes in one of your complexion. Like the water of the Mediterranean." He's reaching for Jubilee's face ,and before I can warn him she slaps his hand away.
"Don't." Her voice is dead, like Edward's, and I shudder. "Try and touch me again, and you'll learn the danger of playing with fireworks up close and personal."
"You do not like me?" He sounds hurt, but I see a calculating look flash behind his eyes before his smooth, apathetic mask slides into place.
"No."
"How disappointing." Jean-Claude sighed, adopting the attitude of a mournful puppy. "You do not find me attractive either? Some women do not like me, but at least they find me physically pleasing. Anita did not like me at first, but even she found me beautiful."
"I'm sure you could have any woman you wanted, that's what vampire mind-tricks are for. I find the knowledge of what you are more repulsive than any physical aesthetics you could possibly posses."
"You tell the truth." He doesn't bother to hide the amazement in his voice. "I can smell it on you."
"Jubilee doesn't like vampires very much, Jean-Claude. She had a run-in with a rouge, and survived. You don't touch her, and she won't kill you." He's regarding them with his blank mask, but I can feel the curiosity in his mind. I touch his arm. "Back up, don't give her a reason to do anything. If you give her an opening, she'll take it, I promise."
"Is the Executioner trying to keep vampires alive now?" Richard's voice is harsh. "How interesting."
"What I said to the corpse goes for you too." Jubilee turns her strange eyes on Richard, and Jamil quickly moves closer to him. "I don't know what you are or who you are, and I don't care. I don't like things that go bump-in-the-dark, and I don't like people who upset my friends. I think you probably fall in both categories." She smiled sensually, a predators' grin, and Jamil pulled his power to him. "When Anita gets upset, Angelo gets upset. When Angelo gets upset, I blow things up until he feels better. So don't fuck with Anita."
"Ange, Jubes, Richard is the head of the local werewolf pack." I take a deep breath, slowly moving between her and the boys. "He's my ex-boyfriend. Jamil and Jason are also werewolves. Jamil is Richard's top enforcer and bodyguard, since Richard can't handle the job alone."
"That's nice."
"You be nice." I rub my head. "Can't you people be together for ten minuets without fighting?"
"They were fighting over you. As usual." Asher's soft tones come from the corner. "Richard and Jean-Claude are having issues over how the other one treats you."
"Whoa, you're dating both of them?" Angelo's eyes dart back and forth between the men. "Shit amiga. You got a harem going or something?"
"I think that's what she wants." Richards eyes go all golden, and his face twists into a sneer. "But she's too pure to sleep with a werewolf, she only has sex with corpses." I can't help my sharp intake of breath. "Oh, did that hurt?"
"I told you not to upset her." Jubilee is slowly raising her hands to chest level, flexing her fingers slightly. "You only get one more warning."
Jamil looked at her with his impassive eyes. "Richard is our Ulfric, little-one. He is pack-leader. Anita may be our lupa, but she cannot accept his beast. He is within his right to reject her."
Jubilee just cracked her gum, looking at him with one eyebrow raised. "Big whoop. So uber-unimpressed. He's still a Grade A numbnut." There's shocked silence for a moment, and then Zane and Jason start giggling.
"Numbnut?" Jason looked at Jubilee incredulously. "I don't think anyone's ever said anything like that to him before!" The two of them howl in laughter, as Richard turned redfaced. "That's wonderful!"
Jamil slowly advanced on Jason, tension coiled in his muscles and beaded dreadlocks swinging behind him. "Are you mocking your Ulfric? You'd join with this *human* in humiliating him?"
"Watch who you call human, wolfman." Angelo imperceptibly tightens his hold on Jubilee's wrist. Interesting. "You don't know who or what we are. Don't underestimate us too much."
Jamil turned away from Jason to stare at Angelo. "You don't smell like the dead. You don't feel like a shapeshifter. You, boy, smell faintly of Anita's power, but the girl doesn't feel like anything I know. You are not trained enough to hurt me, and she is harmless."
That's when the room explodes into light.
Once my eyes clear, I have to blink a few times before I believe what I see.
Angelo is standing there, and he's gray. His skin is gray. It shifts and slides along him, moving as he moves. Jubilee floats a foot off the ground, surrounded by shimmering globes that shift colors. Her eyes are glowing as sparks stream from her fingers. Jamil stands infront of Richard, snarling uncertainly at the shining woman and my strange cousin. Jean-Claude has retreated a few feet, placing a nervous Asher behind him. Knowing how much Asher hates fire, I'm proud that he hasn't flinched. Jason sits on the couch, staring in rapture at the colors streaming past him. Zane just lounges against the wall, smirking. It takes me a moment to find my voice.
"Angelo, what are you?"
"I told you, a mutant." He shoots a bemused glance at Jubilee. "My skin stretches. A lot. Not really a shapeshifter, more of a shape-bender. Like I said, you don't really have to worry about me accidentally hurting someone. If I wanted to, I could, but that requires effort. She, on the other hand, likes to take things apart at the molecular level and turn it into some stunning fireworks. Would you like a demonstration?" His finger stretches away from his body and he pokes Jubilee. "Mi corazon, you're floating again. It's hard for me to look threatening when you're floating and shooting sparks."
"Harmless?" Her smile is innocent, and completely malevolent. "You think I'm harmless, little wolf? Why don't we dance, and you'll see how harmless I am...."
"Jubicita! Down!" Angelo yanks her wrist and she floats to the floor. "You give away our advantage, and now you want to incinerate my cousin's friends? Anita's never had good taste in men, but frying a few of them would be a bit tacky since we're guests." He grins at us, shrugging. "Told you that my appearance usually freaked out the normals."
Jason grinned back at him, still highly amused by the whole display. "Good thing for you we're not normal." He rose from his couch, padding over to where I stood. "So, does the girl do parties?"