I don't own Gargoyles or anything associated except these original characters which I myself created and no one may use without my permission.
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Previously on Gargoyles:
Thailog chuckled. "Like what you see my young angel," he said as he nibbled on her clitoris. "You know you love it."
Lana wept tears of humiliation wanting to scream, howl and plead for her mother to come, but all she could say was "no don't!"
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He closed his eyes in contentment and felt her soft hands and talons stroke him. He purred like a lion and rubbed her arms with his hands.
He didn't even notice the rock she had in her hand until she started using it on him.
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The Gargoyle clutched its face in agony. Its nose had been smashed almost completely flat, its horns had been broken off along with its cheek and chin bones that were also lodged out of place and one of its eyes was all puffed up and swollen.
The gargoyle roared in pain and grief as it shed both tears of despair and tears of blood.
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"Gabriel," Lana said hesitantly. "If I asked you to do something, would you do it for me?"
"In the blink of an eye," Gabriel said confidently.
Lana took a deep breath. "Will you make love to me?"
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"WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?" An angry loud voice filled the room making the both of them jump.
Gabriel leaped out of bed and stood in a battle stance ready to protect his beloved, but found instead in the doorway Demona glaring at him, her eyes flaring red.
Gabriel began to feel very uneasy under her almost legendary gaze.
"On second thought," Demona hissed icily. "Don't tell me." She pointed to Gabriel. "I can pretty much guess!"
Gabriel suddenly realised that he wasn't wearing any of his clothes, blushing brightly he wrapped both of his wings around himself as a cover.
A moment later, Darlene came rushing in and gasped at the scene that beheld her. She took one look at the naked Gabriel and then one look to her equally naked daughter lying in bed looking like she was ready to curl up and die.
"Oh dear," Darlene could only muster.
* * * * * Trapped * * * * *
And now, the continuation:
"Oh dear," Darlene said as she stared at her daughter Lana as she clutched the sheets of her bed to her chest while blushing fiercely. Not to mention Gabriel who was standing wearing not a stitch and covering himself with his own wings. He too was blushing fiercely and looked as though he wanted to curl up and hide himself from the world.
"Hey, what's going on?"
Darlene swung round and intercepted Jarred before he could come into the bedroom. "Nothing," she said to him. "Go to your room and stay there with Gem until I say so."
"Awww but mooom… "Jarred moaned.
"Now," she said sternly. Jarred grumbled but complied.
She looked back to the blushing duo and noticed her mother glaring at them furiously. Demona looked ready to start fighting.
"You… You… "Demona snarled. "You filthy good for nothing leech!" She would have leapt upon him if Darlene had not grabbed her shoulders and held her back.
"Let me go," Demona snarled again, struggling to free herself.
"Not until you've calmed down," Darlene said calmly and prayed that she would listen as she doubted that she would be able to hold her mother for very long time if at all.
Fortunately, Demona seemed to listen and stopped struggling though the hostile look in her eyes never dimmed.
Gabriel had never looked so scared in his life and had almost considered fleeing if Lana had not been there.
"Mother," Darlene began calmly. "Perhaps you should go and contact Goliath and the others and tell them that Lana has been found."
Demona looked as if she was about to disagree but a hard look from Darlene silenced her and she reluctantly nodded and left the room.
Darlene closed the door behind her and looked back to her daughter and her now apparent lover. Gabriel's legs were crossed to hide more that his wings could not. Lana just looked down at the bed with the sheets tightly wrapped around her.
"So how did you enjoy the wedding," Darlene asked casually.
Gabriel and Lana both looked up startled at her.
"I thought they went a bit overboard with the cake but I guess when you have two hungry fellows like Broadway and Jarred then you have to be prepared." Darlene looked at Gabriel. "What did you think of it?"
"Umm," Gabriel stuttered. "It was… very nice."
Darlene nodded and then noticed his loincloth near her feet. She picked it up and held it out to him. "Yours I believe," she asked.
Gabriel blushed even brighter. "Yes, thank you." He grabbed his clothes from her and hurried to put them back on.
Darlene watched him amusingly for a few moments before she noticed some bruising around Lana's face and hurriedly walked over to her. "What happened?"
Lana cringed as her mother touched her cheek. "Thailog wasn't exactly the ideal host," she simply replied.
Darlene froze. "What… did he do to you?"
Lana blinked and looked even more uncomfortable. She looked to Gabriel who stared at her with a sad look in his eyes.
"He raped me," Lana finally said.
Darlene cried out and grabbed her daughter in a tight embrace. She wept as she held her daughter protectively and rocked her back and forth like a baby.
"Did you get him," Darlene asked Gabriel emotionlessly.
Gabriel looked uncomfortable again and was about to speak when Lana beat him to it.
"No," Lana said. "He didn't, I did."
Darlene looked at her in surprise. "Lana?"
Lana raised her head up to her and Darlene noticed the tears shining in her eyes. "I don't know if he's dead mom," she whimpered. "I attacked him… with a rock. It was just after he… you know… I went mad and I… "
"Shhh, shhh," Darlene said soothingly and went back to rocking her. "It's alright Lana. No one can blame you for what you did. I doubt there has ever been a rape victim who didn't wish for vengeance against her attacker."
"But you don't understand," Lana cried. "I was so… out of control. I didn't stop and when I did… My God I don't think there was anything left of his face."
Darlene looked to Gabriel who had come closer and raised his arm apparently to comfort her but he stopped when he saw her staring at him. Darlene nodded though and Gabriel rested his hand on Lana's shoulder.
Lana didn't seem to notice and cried into her mother's shoulder. Darlene sighed and gave Gabriel a look that basically told him to give her a few minutes alone with her daughter. Gabriel took the hint and slowly departed from the room.
Darlene took her daughter by the sides of her face and looked deep into her eyes. "Now you listen to me," she half growled. "Maybe you shouldn't have overreacted like you did. But God Lana, after what he did to you… It's no wonder you went mad if only for a few moments. Anyone would have."
"And does that make it right," Lana said accusingly.
Darlene sighed. "Perhaps not, but it's not as if you had a choice. Do you think if you hadn't attacked him then he would have let you go?"
Lana shook her head instantly. Thailog had made it perfectly clear what he wanted and he had no intention of ever releasing her.
Darlene stroked the side of her face. "It makes me so mad to learn of what he did to you Lana," tears started to stream down her mother's face now. "I should have been there to protect you. I should have stopped him! It's my entire fault!"
"No mom," Lana insisted. "It's not your fault. None of us could have known that Thailog would come after me so soon."
Darlene stroked Lana's hair. "You are sooo precious to me, you all are. I don't know what I'd do if anything were to happen to any of you."
Lana half smiled but there were still tears in her eyes. "I just… I just don't know what I'm going to do now mom?"
Darlene looked at her daughter in sympathy. "Lana," she started. "This is something that's going to be living with you for a long, long time if not forever. I wish I could say otherwise, but it's the truth. You have to learn to live with it and get on with the rest of your life."
"But what if I can't?"
Darlene sighed. "Then don't do it alone." She smiled briefly. "From what I saw earlier, you're certainly not alone anymore as I'm sure Gabriel will make certain of."
Lana blushed.
"Which brings me to another topic we need to talk about," Darlene said sternly. "But that can wait till another time. Lana, when I lost your father I felt so alone. I thought the whole world was against me and that I had no one… But then I remembered that I had you kids. As long as I had you three then I could be strong and get through whatever life threw at me."
Lana smiled as she once again remembered her father's old saying. "Life can be a bitch… "
"So it's important that we show her that we can be total bitches too," Darlene finished for her and they laughed.
"Seriously though," Darlene took her daughter's hand. "Don't ever think for one moment that you are alone Lana, you hear me?"
Lana nodded.
"We are your family Lana," Darlene continued. "Your clan. As long as we're still standing, you'll never be alone, ever."
Tears of happiness filled Lana's eyes as she embraced her mother. "Thanks mom."
Darlene smiled and then she took on a more serious look. "And now, onto other matters… Mind explaining me when you and Gabriel got so serious?"
Lana blushed and looked nervously at her.
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Demona growled at Gabriel as they stood outside Lana's bedroom.
Gabriel tried to look brave, but how brave can you be when you've just been caught sleeping with the granddaughter of one of the most dangerous warriors of all time?
He could tell that Demona had a million questions that she wanted answers to, either that or she just simply wanted to blast him with that laser canon of hers. Thankfully though, she was concerned about Lana and was waiting for her to come out.
Finally, the door opened and Darlene stepped out the room with Lana in tow.
"Well," Demona asked anxiously. "What happened? Where's Thailog? Did he… "
"Mother," Darlene said sternly. "Later."
Demona went quiet and glared at Gabriel whom she blamed for all of tonight's events.
Gabriel cringed under Demona's hot glare but smiled at Lana as she moved to stand beside him.
"I guess I needn't ask what you two were up to when we got home," Demona said hotly looking in disgust at the two of them.
"Yes," Darlene said. "I've talked with Lana about that and I've accepted the fact that she was so overwhelmed with distress that she couldn't think clearly." She looked back at Lana. "I will however be getting her a chastity belt to wear from now on."
"MOM!"
Darlene held up her hands to say she was only joking though the look in Demona's eyes clearly indicated that she didn't think it to be such a bad idea.
"So," Darlene began again. "I take it you two are more than just friends now, obviously."
Gabriel smiled and took Lana's hand clutching it to his heart. Demona growled but he chose to ignore her at that time.
"Well," Darlene sighed. "I wish you could have found a more appropriate way of telling us you were seeing each other. But I think with what's gone on so far tonight, I think we can let it past."
Demona snarled. "WHAT?"
Darlene looked at her unhappily. "Mother," she whispered. "I promise I will tell you everything but for now, just take my word that Lana has been through a hell of a lot tonight and she needed… to be with someone."
Demona looked as if she were ready for war. Darlene ignored her and looked at Gabriel. "Gabriel," she said. "I think you should be getting back to the Eyrie now as I'm sure Goliath and everyone else will be wondering where you are. Mother has already informed them that Lana has been found but we haven't given them the full details. They'll need a report from you."
Gabriel nodded and looked at Lana as if for her permission. Lana nodded and kissed him goodbye. They held each other closely for a few moments before finally breaking apart and Gabriel made his way out, passing by Demona who gave him another low threatening growl that quickened his pace.
Lana watched him leave for a while before her mother touched her shoulder and looked at her sympathetically.
"Lana," Darlene whispered. "Perhaps you should go back to bed? You need the rest."
Lana wanted to say she wasn't tired but the look in her mother's eyes told her that she required some time alone with her grandmother to tell her all that had transpired so far, something that Lana was not looking forward to.
"Okay," she replied and walked back inside her room closing the door behind her.
Darlene turned and stared her mother in the face, a sad expression on her. "Mother," she simply said. "We need to talk."
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Eyrie Building:
Three more of Gabriel's rookery siblings swooped down and landed on the battlements of Castle Wyvern. Everyone else had already arrived and was either waiting in the courtyard for everyone else to arrive or in the castle consuming what was left of the wedding feast.
Brooklyn, Lexington, Broadway and Angela were standing by the fireplace in the Great Hall waiting anxiously for any word on Lana. In the months that they had met her they had each grown quite fond of the headstrong female and loved her as family, Broadway and Angela because she was their niece and Brooklyn and Lex because of the obvious. Although they had apparently caught the attentions of two attractive females from Avalon, they still carried a torch for her.
Demona had contacted Goliath on the communicator that Lexington had given her and he had informed the rest of the clan to end the search.
A short while later, Lexington noticed a pale shape descending through the clouds and heading towards them.
"Hey look," he shouted to the others and they looked up to see Gabriel land with a thud upon the concrete.
The quartet immediately ran forward on all fours anxiously, eager to know the fate of their friend and clan member.
"Brother, what happened?"
"Is Lana alright?"
"Did you get Thailog?"
"Does Darlene know?"
"Friends," Gabriel raised his hands to calm them. "Peace! Lana is… "He stopped there as he wasn't certain that Lana was completely alright. "She is… alive, and her body will be strong again after a day of stone sleep." 'Aye but what about her soul," he thought.
Angela looked relieved. "How is she," she asked. "Did Thailog hurt her?"
Gabriel suddenly looked uncomfortable and he looked into her eyes in distress.
"Gabriel," Angela asked concerned.
Gabriel sighed and finally admitted. "She was raped by him."
Angela cried out as if she were in pain whereas the trio both wore masks of pure rage, their eyes flaring and their fangs bore.
"Where is he?" Brooklyn snarled. "Where is the dirty freak?"
Gabriel knew how they felt as he himself wanted to find Thailog and see to it that he never hurt another soul again. "I do not know," he said. "Lana… Let us just say that she dealt him a final blow that he may never recover from." 'Assuming he survived,' he thought.
Angela looked at him curiously and was about to ask what he meant when he beat her to it. "Lana needed to escape… She had to fight to get away from him. She fears that… she might have overdone it."
Just then, Goliath entered the hall and upon seeing Gabriel, he made his way over to him with questions in his eyes. "Gabriel," he said. "Tell us the news of Lana."
"No wait father," Angela interrupted. "Let's wait for everyone else to arrive. That way, Gabriel can give us his full report without saying it again to the others."
Goliath agreed and led Gabriel to a chair in the centre of the room while waiting until everyone else came. Pretty soon the whole hall was filled to the brim with gargoyles, three humans and a Fae in mortal disguise.
Gabriel sighed as most of them crossed their arms and waited for his report. In truth, he did not want to be doing this, gossiping over what had been done to Lana like some nosy old woman. Particularly the part where he and Lana returned to her house, but the clan deserved an explanation and they needed to know Thailog's involvement. So he took a deep breath and spoke.
Half an hour past, Gabriel had told the clan about Thailog taking Lana prisoner at his hideout and eventually raped her. The clan had all been enraged at this, especially Goliath but he also had a touch of deep sadness in his eyes and somehow Gabriel knew that the grief he felt was not all for Lana.
Gabriel then explained how he took Lana home.
"Why didn't you inform the rest of us that you had rescued Lana?" One of his rookery brothers asked.
Gabriel blushed. "We… I sort of didn't have time."
"What do you mean?"
"Well," Gabriel tried to find someway out of this. "One thing led to another, I brought Lana home and she was in so much emotional distress that she needed my aid in… "Gabriel went even redder in the cheeks.
"Come on lad," Hudson urged him. "What happened? It can't be that bad surely?"
Gabriel idly flicked the stone floor with his toe talons and looked unsure at them. "Well as I said… Lana was very wrought with despair that she needed help in… bathing."
The clan all looked at him in surprise. Some of them with mouths that were gaping open and others, the ones of his rookery brothers mostly along with Brooklyn and Lex, looked envious.
"Nothing happened," he assured them. "At least… not at that time anyway."
"That time?" Goliath said unbelievably.
Gabriel groaned. "We… We… We mated." He finally said quietly.
"What?" The whole clan strained their ears to hear him.
Gabriel growled in embarrassment. "We mated!"
There was an eerie silence in the Eyrie, so quiet that one could have heard a pin drop at the other side of the hall. Every one of the clan and the Xanatoses stared at Gabriel in shock and disbelief.
"You…. What?" Brooklyn had finally found his voice.
Gabriel looked at him pleadingly. "Please don't make me repeat it again."
Angela took a few steps forward. Gabriel looked at her in the eye and they both stared at each other for a few moments… Then, Angela slapped him around the face.
Gabriel yelped in pain and clutched his cheek staring in shock at his rookery sister. "What was that for?"
Angela's eyes flared red at him. "You took advantage of her when she was at her most vulnerable!"
Gabriel's eyes also began to flare white silver at her. "I never did anything of the sort! She was in pain and I couldn't do anything… "
"So you decided to sleep with her," Angela snarled.
"NO!" Gabriel roared making everyone back up a few paces. "She asked me to. She said she wanted to be near someone, someone… she cared for. She asked me to and I… "
"Being the noble and caring gargoyle you are, you just couldn't say no could you," Angela sneered.
'I'm starting to see the resemblance between Angela and her mother,' Gabriel groaned. "I love her!" He admitted out loud.
That made Angela pause and she looked at him in disbelief for a moment.
"I do love her Angela," Gabriel continued. "I care for her in a way that I never thought possible, a way that I never really felt for anyone else before in my life. When she first asked me to sleep with her, I refused at first. But she was in so much pain and I could do nothing to help her. I didn't know what to do, so I did as she asked… And I'm not sorry."
Angela lost her sneer completely and looked at him with pity in her eyes. "You do love her don't you?"
Gabriel looked straight into her eyes and nodded.
Suddenly, one of the Avalon gargoyles laughed and slapped Gabriel on the shoulder. "Well Gab, looked like you finally got yourself a mate."
Gabriel turned and glared at his rookery brother. "My would be mate was raped tonight brother. Her body was violated and her soul even more so, so I would appreciate you not to talk of her as a prize."
There was another eerie silence and for a while, no one said anything. Finally, Goliath asked, "do you know what became of Thailog?"
Gabriel shook his head. "Before I returned here, I doubled back and did a quick search of the place you call Central Park where I found Lana, but I saw no sign of your… double."
Goliath frowned. "We should make every effort to find him," he turned to the rest of the clan and Xanatos. "Xanatos have your robots scout ahead and search every inch of the park with their infra red eyes, the rest of us will follow."
Xanatos nodded and indicated Owen to follow him.
Goliath left the hall and walked out with Elisa following after him.
Gabriel sighed and looked at all the funny looks he was getting from his rookery siblings particularly his brothers. He briefly heard one of them say something that sounded remarkably lie 'lucky bastard.'
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Elisa swore as she strode after Goliath. "Goliath, wait up!" She called to him.
Goliath slowed down but didn't stop. "Elisa, please leave me."
Elisa snorted. "Not likely. Last time I checked it was still our wedding night, remember?"
Goliath slowed down a little more but still didn't stop. "I'm beginning to think you made a mistake in accepting my proposal for marriage Elisa."
Elisa looked in shock at him. "What do you mean?"
Goliath finally stopped and looked at Elisa with his eyes full of sorrow. "I was foolish enough to believe that there was some hope for Thailog! After our last confrontation with him, I swore I saw love in his eyes when he looked at Lana. I truly believe that there was some good in him after all, but now… "Goliath looked grief stricken. "Now he's gone and done this! Raped an innocent girl, probably destroyed her life!"
Elisa looked in disbelief at him. "You're not seriously thinking that this is in some way your fault are you big guy?"
Goliath sighed and shrugged. "No, none of us were able to capture Thailog the last time so there was no avoiding this. I just find that my judgement seems to be almost always wrong." His eyes suddenly looked as if they had aged another thousand years. "I believed in my second in command, my angel of the night and yet it turned out that she and the captain, the one human we trusted, were the betrayers that killed all but a few of our clan. Now I foolishly believed in the good of a creature that obviously has no good in him, all because he was made from me!"
Elisa walked over and embraced him as far as her arms could go. "Goliath," she tried to soothe him. "You wanted to believe the best in him because you believe that everyone has a good side. That's one of the many things that I love most about you. Don't hate yourself because you dared to hope."
Goliath sighed. "I am and always will be responsible for Thailog my Elisa. Despite all that he did, he was still my son. I failed him."
"No!" Elisa glared at him. "You have failed nobody but yourself if you believe that. Thailog chose his own path and now he must live with the consequences of his own actions."
Goliath sighed again and ran his talons through his hair. "I don't know what to do Elisa. I want to find Thailog not only to stop him from hurting anymore innocents, but to try and help him as well. Is that so wrong of me, because of all the evil he's done."
"No," Elisa said sympathetically. "It's called caring. You love your son and you want to help him, there's no shame in that."
Goliath smiled. "You will never know how happy you made me tonight when you consented to be my mate."
Elisa grinned. "That's what I'm here for."
Goliath frowned suddenly. "I only wish we had a more pleasant memory of our wedding night. Poor Lana's violation is going to haunt us all on this night that was meant to be ours."
Elisa grin fell and she sadly nodded. Suddenly, she grinned. "Well maybe we can make at least one pleasant memory," she said slyly. "Tell me, do you have to go on patrol with the others right away?"
Goliath blinked. "Umm... No. Why do you aaa… "He didn't get to finish as Elisa grabbed his arm and dragged him to one of the nearest bedrooms.
"Hey, this is our wedding night remember," Elisa laughed and began unbuttoning her wedding dress off.
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Destine Manor:
Demona had sat and listened quietly while Darlene explained to her what had happened to Lana. She sat there slowly digesting the information. When Darlene was finished, her daughter sat watching her for a few moments.
A whole minute past and still Demona did nothing but sit there. Darlene didn't know whether that was a good thing or not. She knew better than anyone her mother's infamous temper and wondered if she was just building up to the point of explosion.
But Demona still did nothing. She just sat and stared at nothing with a blank look upon her face.
Finally, Darlene could take it no longer and moved closer to her mother. "Mother," she enquired nervously. "Are you all right?" But still, she did nothing.
Darlene held her hand and squeezed it hoping to get a reaction out of her. Finally, Demona turned her head and looked her daughter in the eye.
"I'll kill him," Demona simply said. She didn't say it with rage, hatred or anything that was common with Demona. She was almost completely emotionless when she spoke, yet she said it with an absolute certainty, an oath that she swore she would fulfil someday.
Darlene looked into her haunted eyes and didn't know what she saw in them no more. She opened her mouth to speak, but Demona beat her to it.
"Daughter," she said. "I'm not in the mood for talking. Please… "She got up to leave. "Leave me be." She walked out of the room before Darlene could utter another word.
Darlene watched her mother's departing back and was starting to get a real uneasy feeling.
'Maybe I should tell Angela about this," she thought. 'Maybe she can help?'
Darlene went over to the phone and picked it up to start dialling.
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Angela was just about to join her rookery siblings on the hunt for Thailog when Owen approached her suddenly. She didn't know whom she disliked more, Owen whose quiet approaches put her on edge, or Puck who just drove her and everybody else nuts.
"Miss Angela," he said. "There is a telephone call for you on line three. It's your sister Darlene."
Angela nodded and made her way to Xanatos's office to take the call. She still found it a little unusual when she heard people talk about her sister Darlene. Although Darlene had been in her life now for four months, Angela still found it peculiar to have a new sister that she hadn't grown up with like her rookery sisters.
She entered the head office of David Xanatos, which fortunately did not have him occupying it at the moment. She walked over to his desk and picked up the phone from its cradle and entered the digit number three.
"Hello?"
Hello, Angela?
"Yes hello Darlene. What's wrong? "
I take it you know what happened to Lana?
Angela winced. "Yes, Gabriel told us. I am so sorry sister."
Yeah, Lana seems to be taking it pretty well. At least, that's what she wants us to believe.
"What do you mean?"
Trust me, I know my own daughter. Lana has always been the same. Whenever something horrible happens to her she usually hides her feelings behind a very bitchy attitude.
"Bitchy?"
Umm, anger.
"Oh. So you think she's hiding her true emotions from you?"
Oh I know she is. She has rarely ever fully shown her true feelings to anyone. I'm amazed she told Gabriel. I mean, they've only known each other for less than a night.
"Maybe they really are in love then?"
I guess so. I mean Lana has had her fair share of boyfriends… along with everybody else's. She went through her entire school football team in one week at one time.
Angela blushed. 'Sounds like she's a busy girl,' she thought and worried that maybe she wasn't the right girl for Gabriel after all.
But she's a good girl! Darlene quickly said. She's never done anything to hurt anyone before. Plus, I don't know what it is but I've never seen her look at a guy like Gabriel the way she was doing tonight. She seemed so into him.
"And he into her," she said and added mentally, 'in more ways than one.'
But anyway, I wanted to call you because I think there's something seriously wrong with mom.
"What do you mean?"
Darlene sighed at the other end. After I told her what happened to Lana, she went all quiet and didn't spoke a word for ages. When I finally managed to coax a word out of her, she said that she was going to kill him and left the room.
"Well she has made that kind of threat before Darlene."
Yes and she's usually always come through with her threats. But that wasn't what got me worried, it was the way she said it.
"How so?"
I dunno. She just seemed so… cold and expressionless. Her eyes were like two dark pits when she said it and she didn't fly into a rage like she normally does.
"THAT definitely does NOT sound like mother," Angela admitted. She had never known her mother to not fly into a rage about anything before.
I think she might be taking this threat of hers a little more seriously than she's ever done before. I know how she feels. I mean, Lana is my daughter so I want to get this bastard more than anyone. But the look in her eyes when she said it, it was so cold that it sent shivers down to my talons.
"Perhaps I should have a word with her just in case?"
Would you? That'd be great. Hang on. I'll just go get her.
Angela listened as the phone was lowered down and Darlene's retreating footsteps. She barely waited a few moments before she heard the footsteps hurriedly returning and grabbing the phone.
Angela! Darlene voice sounded urgent and almost hysterical. She's gone! Mother's gone… and so's her bazooka!
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Eyrie Building:
Elisa giggled as Goliath kissed her nipples and ran his large claw through her raven hair.
"Wow," she breathed. To which Goliath grinned.
"Something pleases you my love," he said jokingly.
Elisa looked to him with a big smile on her face. "I knew you were big, but I never would have imagined… It was heaven!"
Goliath smiled. "I take it then that you were satisfied with my performance?"
"Ohhh, more than satisfied big guy, but… Just so we're sure, why don't we do it again?"
Goliath grinned and prepared to kiss her when…
"GOLIATH?" Angela's voice screamed through the door as she banged on it.
Goliath and Elisa both cursed simultaneously. Getting up quickly, Elisa hurriedly dressed herself in their bed sheets and ran into the adjoining bathroom while Goliath just slipped on his loincloth and waited for her to depart before opening the door.
"Yes Angela?" Goliath opened the door stoically as if nothing were amiss.
"Father," she began breathlessly. "I'm sorry to disturb you and Elisa on your wedding night, but I just got a call from Darlene and… Mother's missing."
"Missing," Goliath frowned. "Well, when was the last time she saw her?"
"She said that she had just told her about Lana's rape and then she went all quiet and scary. She said she was going to go after Thailog and then she left to go to her room and when Darlene went to go see her, she was gone!" Angela looked scared. "Father, I know she's gone after Thailog. She just has to have done. I don't know if he'll put up much of a fight but as we know from experience, Thailog is not one to be trifled with and I fear what this will do to mother."
Goliath swore. Thailog would be punished, but not by Demona's way of justice. "We will all go to the park now! That's where Thailog was last seen." Goliath ordered his daughter and rushed out the room after saying goodbye to Elisa.
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Central Park:
The demon snarled as she leapt from branch to branch and ran across the green grass faster than lightning and carrying with her, her weapon.
She sniffed the air for her prey but so far had found nothing.
She overheard the muffled moans of two human lovers who were making out in a bush close by. She ignored them, concentrating on locating her prey and killing him.
Finally, the demon caught a whiff of her prey's scent on the wind. Restraining herself from crying out in joy, she followed the scent to its point of origin.
She ran through some more bushes, ignoring the stings of the nettles and the scratches from the thorns she soon found herself in a small clearing hidden deep behind some trees and shrubbery.
The scent was strongest here but she saw no sign of her prey. She did however see a dark red stain on the grass before her.
Kneeling down, she inspected the stain and sure enough found it to be blood. She also found some small pieces of bone that could have come from the creature's horns or even some of its own skull.
She suddenly noticed another particularly smell, the smell of semen. The demon's eyes flared red like Hell as she realised this must have been the place where the rape had occurred.
Her quest became an obsession as she glared around the clearing looking for any sign of her prey or a clue to his whereabouts. She was rewarded with a sight of his footprints or claw marks in the ground. They looked as if he had been staggering so he couldn't have got very far.
With a growl of anticipation, she followed the claw marks on all fours, the predator searching for her prey.
0000000000
A Few Minutes Later:
"Space out," Goliath ordered through his communicator. "We will each go in teams of three and search in different directions. Once you find Demona, contact me but do not engage her, that's an order."
The rest of the clan agreed and began finding their partners and spanning out.
Goliath went with Hudson who had insisted on coming with him. They took the east side of the park.
Hudson frowned. "Och so where do ye think Demona might be at?"
Goliath gave a frown of his own. "I don't know. Angela believes she has gone after Thailog for what he did to Lana. I can believe that." For a brief moment, he was startled at his own words. He never would have imagined Demona would show such love and caring for her own clan again. He thought that part of her had died centuries ago.
"What do ye think she'll do to Thailog when she catches hold of him?"
Goliath shuddered. "I would prefer not to think about that old friend."
Suddenly, Hudson noticed something among the trees and pointed. "There!"
Goliath wasted no time and dove down with Hudson on his tail. They landed just outside a small clearing and looked inside.
"Aye, there be nothing here now," Hudson said as he pointed to the ground. "But someone was here and recently." They moved through the bush and went inside the clearing.
Hudson walked over to a stain in the ground and examined the surroundings. "There was a struggle here," he said and then made a face. "This… must be the place where Lana's violation took place. I can smell the stench of that monster's seed on the ground."
Goliath restrained his own anger at Thailog but kept his emotions in tact as Hudson continued his investigation.
"A lot of injuries were clearly inflicted upon one, obviously Thailog as Lana is physically all right," Hudson sighed. "Judging from the blood and the bone pieces, she must have dealt him one major blow." He looked over to the side of the clearing. "These claw marks here… Some are of Demona's marks. They're fresh so she's been here recently."
"Then we will follow them and they will lead us to her," Goliath immediately took up pursuit with Hudson following him.
Meanwhile, a few yards away from the clearing, a predator was still stalking its prey.
0000000000
Destine Manor:
Darlene signed as she changed Gem's diaper and lifted her up into her chest. "I hope we won't be having these same problems with you or anyone ever again my little one," she stroked Gem's hair and remembered when she had done the same to Lana as a baby.
Darlene smiled as she remembered the day Lana had been born. She hadn't been prepared for the birth at all, since gargoyles lay eggs then she was totally unprepared for giving birth to an actual baby. It had been a long and highly painful birth, one that she had never known pain like it before. But the reward at the end had been worth it.
She remembered the high cries that Lana had made when she took her first breath and when the doctor placed her in her arms and she had felt the warmth and soft wrinkly skin beneath the blanket she had been wrapped in.
A tear shed from Darlene's eye as she also remembered the promise she had made that day. She had sworn to always be there for her daughter and any of her children and protect them from harm.
'I failed,' she thought bitterly. 'Why didn't I foresee this happening? I should have done something to stop it.'
Suddenly, a knock sounded on the balcony door behind her. Darlene was not surprised as she was getting quite used to people coming through their balconies now. Besides, she had been expecting Angela to pop round anyway.
Sure enough, Angela was on the other side of the door tapping the glass pane window.
Darlene opened the door and welcomes her half-sister with a warm hug. "Sister, I'm sorry to bring you out here."
"It's alright," Angela assured her. "I asked Goliath for permission, which he granted. He and I both thought you could do with the company."
Darlene smiled and nodded her thanks. "Would you care for some tea?"
Angela shook her head. "No thank you," she said as she squinted down and tickled Gem's chin. "How's Lana?"
Darlene sighed. "She's asleep now in her room. She looked as if she really needed it."
Angela nodded and then looked into her sister's eyes. "How are you holding up?"
Darlene lost her smile. "Aside from my daughter getting raped, me being powerless to do anything about it and now my mother running off on some vendetta… I'm fine."
Angela hugged her again to offer some comfort. "Everything will be alright. The clan will find Thailog before mother does anything."
"I'm not so sure I want them to find her," Darlene whispered regretfully causing Angela to look at her in shock. "I mean, I want mom back sure. But I also want them to find that bastard Thailog and… Well, I know how life preserving you people is. It's one of the reasons why I love you so, but at the same time… I want vengeance for Lana and I know the only gargoyle who can do that is mom."
Darlene sighed and clutched Gem closer to her chest. "I've always believed in the helping of others, to avoid killing at all costs and to stop hating. With Thailog however, after what he did to my baby girl… I just can't!"
Darlene felt Angela touching her shoulder soothingly. "You don't have to explain Darlene. It's perfectly natural for you to be angry at him. Anyone would be. But you must not let your rage consume you like mother has let hers."
"I know," Darlene growled in frustration and placed Gem back in her playpen. "But nothing will ever convince me to believe in the good of that guy again Angela. He raped my baby girl and if I ever see him again." She growled fiercely. "There won't be enough of him left for the dogs to take scraps from."
For the first time, Angela saw a true resemblance in her sister and their mother. Not just in their looks but in their spirits as well.
0000000000
Central Park:
Goliath and Hudson quietly made their way through the thick bush and around the trees. They perked up their ears and noses for any type of sound or smell they could dictate until finally they found her.
Demona had her nose to the ground growling as she had lost track of Thailog's scent.
"Damn him," she cursed out loud. "Where is he?"
"Where's who Demona?" A voice spoke out behind her.
Demona spun around so fast that her tail had to catch up with her. She found Goliath staring at her with a hard look and Hudson who seemed to be staring at her with a touch of sadness of his.
"What are you doing here?" Demona snarled.
"I believe I asked you a question first Demona," Goliath replied.
Demona growled impatiently. "You know perfectly well who I am looking for Goliath," she hissed. "I'm looking for that gutless raping degenerate who dares call himself a gargoyle, Thailog!"
Goliath sighed while Hudson just looked on sadly at her.
"I know how you feel Demona… "Goliath began but Demona roared at him.
"You haven't a clue as to how I feel Goliath," Demona hissed at him. "You don't know what it's like… "
"I know perfectly what it's like," Goliath countered. "Recall that I was there at the time of the Hunter's Moon when the hunter attacked Angela and nearly killed there." He glared at Demona briefly because he knew that Demona was partly to blame for the attack as she had started the hunt over nine hundred years ago. "I too felt helpless as I watched her get trashed by them and then I felt an overwhelming thirst for vengeance that nearly destroyed my clan and everything I held dear." Goliath looked at her pleadingly. "I beg you Demona; don't let your hatred rule you again. Don't let it destroy everything you've accomplished so… "
"You don't understand!" Demona screamed. "Thailog raped Lana, my granddaughter and it was my entire fault because I didn't obey my instincts the first time."
Goliath looked at her confused. "What's that supposed to mean?"
Demona swore and looked down at the earth and when she looked up; Goliath saw to his surprise that she had tears in them. "I still loved him Goliath," Demona said quietly. "I still loved Thailog even after I learned of his betrayal… "
0000000000
Amusement Park;
The night of the clone's unveiling:
"Do you wish to perish?" Thailog said in panic.
Demona held him by his shoulders and glared at him with her eyes flaring red. "My vengeance is all you've left me!"
She saw with glee how Thailog's eyes widened in fear. It was only until after she felt the structure of the roller coaster ride that they were standing on that she realised what got him so frightened.
She yelled in surprise as the entire structure toppled over and Thailog roared in fear. She briefly heard what she thought was her daughter Angela calling out to her, but it couldn't have been as she could have sworn she had called her mother?
0000000000
Demona's eyes slowly opened and she groaned in pain. It was still night and she could feel and hear the flames all around her.
She checked to see where she was and found that she was lying under a pile of timber from the roller coaster ride. The wood had luckily protected her from the flames, not that she needed protection thanks to the sister's spell of immortality. But being burned to death wasn't one of her favourite things to do.
She managed to pull herself up, as most of the flames had extinguished themselves by then. She pushed the timber off and rose shakily to her feet.
Demona looked around and saw no one near by. Goliath and his clan had obviously long since left. She wondered how long she had been under there.
Suddenly, she heard a low moan of pain coming just a few metres away from where she was. Curiously, she limped over to where the sounds were coming from and found to her greater surprise… Thailog!
Like her, Thailog had managed to get himself encased in a cocoon of timber from the ride that had protected him from the raging flames. He moaned again as he moved about from under the logs of wood upon his back as he valiantly tried to get up.
Demona felt her rage build up and snarling she grabbed a piece of timber and strode over to where Thailog was lying despite her aching wounds. She raised the timber above her preparing to strike the killing blow on her former love.
Thailog groaned and raised his head to look her straight in the eye. She saw with delight how his eyes froze in fear again and he moaned in pain and grief.
Suddenly, she felt an overwhelming sense of pain as she looked down upon him. He had betrayed her in the worst possible way that anyone had ever done in her entire existence. Yet as she stared at him, she could only remember the nights of warmth and passion that she had spent with him. The nights when they had soared together, he had held her in his arms and wings telling her sweet tales of them being together for all eternity and that his love for her would never die.
'Lies,' she thought bitterly, 'nothing but lies from his accursed mouth.'
But try as she might, she could not forget them. She looked down again at the pitiful creature she had once called her love. She looked around and saw that the timber around him had almost completely trapped him, he could very well not escape or then again maybe he could.
It went against her instinct and judgement, but… she lowered the timber and dropped it on the ground.
She then went up to him and lowered down so that she was whispering in his ear. "Listen well Thailog," she hissed into his ear. "If you EVER come near me or threaten the life of my daughter Angela again, I will hunt you down and kill you in the slowest most excruciating pain-filled death that any mortal has ever feared. And I'll do it with a smile and a song in my heart, understand?"
Thailog was still staring at her in fear but he managed a feeble nod of his head.
Demona then struck the side of his head with her bare fist and listened with content the crack of his skull as he fell unconscious.
Demona rose and slowly made her way out of the rumble. There was no one about, not even the gargoyle clones that Sevarius had had made for them. She felt a tad sad and disappointed about that as she had been looking forward to having some new gargoyles live with her, even if they had only been clones.
'Always alone,' she thought. 'Nothing ever changes… always alone.'
Demona stepped out of the rumble of timber and charred remains and took to the air to return to her mansion… alone.
0000000000
Present:
Demona smiled bitterly as she regarded the shocked looks on Goliath and Hudson. Neither of them would ever have guessed that Demona would ever allow an enemy to go free. They had thought that kind of compassion went out of her a long time ago.
"Yes Goliath," she said snidely. "Impossible as it may be to believe, but your former angel of the night had a heart even after she went insane."
Goliath sighed. "And you blame yourself for Lana's rape because of this?"
Demona eyes flared red as she snarled. "I allowed Thailog to live and because of that, my daughter nearly lost her life and I my freedom, my granddaughter had her trust and her body violated and my company's security was at risk from him. All of this happened because I stupidly allowed him to go free when I should have just gutted him right then and there!"
Goliath looked at his former second with pity and a hint of respect. "You were faced with a situation where your enemy was injured and dying, there would have been no honour in killing him while he was like that."
Demona snorted. "Don't give me that stupid code of honour garbage Goliath. I let my heart make my decision for me that one time and it has come back to haunt me as it will continue to do so for all time."
Goliath refused to give up. "You were compassionate! You saw your enemy and former lover lying trapped and half-dead. You couldn't bring yourself to kill him."
Demona glared at him. "I only have compassion for my family and clan now Goliath and no one else."
Goliath almost snorted at that when he thought of how quickly she turned against him and their clan when they had first awoken.
Hudson who had been watching and listening closely sighed sadly. "Yuir not the only one who ave made mistakes lass. I me self made one just like the one you did long ago."
Goliath and Demona looked to him in surprise. "What do you mean?" They asked simultaneously.
Hudson sighed again. "Do ye recall the time when the Vikings attacked us years before the massacre, when Prince Malcolm was still ruler and they had come to steak our grain?"
Goliath and Demona both nodded.
Hudson looked up to the sky, his eyes looking as though they were far away in the past. "Well there is something that I ave never told ye bairns… During the attack, I slaughtered many of the Vikings… except one."
Hudson looked uncomfortable. "There was a boy no more than ten whose father had been one of the Vikings, most likely their leader. I dinna know what the young whelp was doing on a battlefield at his age but nevertheless he was. I dinna realise that I had killed the boy's father right before his eyes until it was too late. After I had slain his father, the lad attacked me with his father's sword but of course I stopped him easily… "
Goliath and Demona waited while Hudson took another deep breath and sighed.
"I had a chance to slay the boy right then and there. I knew I was askin for trouble but try as I might… I couldna bring me self to harm the lad, so I sent him on his way back to his people."
Demona felt her heart go cold and she swallowed nervously. "Whatever happened to him?"
Hudson looked at her with true regret in his eyes. "The lad's name… was Hakon!"
Demona pulled back as if struck by her own sword. The boy who Hudson had spared was none other than Hakon the clan's slaughterer.
Goliath looked shocked too but he looked at his mentor with sympathy. "You had no other choice old friend."
Demona glared at him and snarled. "What do you mean? Didn't you hear what he just said? He spared the life of the man who eventually killed our clan!"
Goliath returned her glare with one of his own. "In case you hadn't heard Demona, he wasn't a man back then but a mere child. What should he have done, killed the boy?"
Demona hissed. "Our clan would probably still be alive if he had done."
Goliath thinned his eyes at her. "Aye maybe, but what kind of a loathsome creature would harm a child?"
Demona growled but stayed silent.
Hudson spoke. "Lass, maybe it was a mistake letting the lad live back then but… Pray tell, what else could I have done? Like Goliath said, what kind of creature harms a child?"
Demona clenched and unclenched her fists.
Hudson gazed at her. "It's the same with Thailog. Maybe it was a mistake letting him go like that but… it was honourable. There was no honour in his death at that time."
"Maybe," she said. "But that doesn't mean I won't find him now and finish what I started! This time I'll make certain he never comes after me or my family again." With this said, Demona turned and ran on all fours in the direction she had originally been heading in.
"Blast it," Hudson and Goliath both said and went after her.
Demona tore through the bushes and ran across the grass but try as she might, she could not find anymore trace of Thailog. She growled in frustration and then flung her head back and roared to the air in rage, un-accepting that he had eluded her once more.
Goliath and Hudson soon caught up with her. Demona glared at then. "That bastard has escaped me again!" She pounded her fists into the ground and tore up some of the earth with them.
Goliath looked to Hudson and nodded at him.
Hudson took the hint, moved forward and looked around but sighed and shook his head at Goliath. Wherever Thailog was, he had made certain to cover his tracks.
"Demona," Goliath didn't know whether to be relieved or concerned that Thailog had disappeared again. "Thailog is gone. There's no point in you being here. Let's go home."
Demona snarled, refusing to give up. "No! I have to find him! I can't let him get away from me again!"
"Yuir daughter needs you lass!" Hudson barked. "Her own daughter is in a state of turmoil and she needs help from you to help her. What's more important, your vengeance or your family?"
Demona glared at him. "It is for my family that I am doing this old soldier. With Thailog out on the loose then there's no telling what he'll do."
"Then prepare for him," Goliath suggested. "See to it that you know where your family are at all times, secure your home and even ask us for help. But don't go out on a mad hunt like the hunters Demona, not when your family needs you."
Demona paused then. Her fists were shaking almost uncontrollably. "I want him dead Goliath," she said coldly. "I know you've got this foolish idea about redeeming him because you see him as your son, but know this… If I see then I will kill him! No questions asked, no doubts or compromises. Do you understand?"
Goliath gave her a hard look. "You do realise that I will stop you?"
Demona thinned her eyes. "I know you'll try, but do you understand my terms?"
"Perfectly," Goliath answered. "Now may we return home? Darlene was asking after you."
Demona nodded, but neither of them ever stopped glaring at each other the whole way home.
0000000000
Destine Manor:
Lana made her way down the hallway and stopped as she heard her mother and Aunt Angela's voices coming from the living room. She pricked up her ears to listen.
"She's such a dirty little slut." Her mother's voice said. "I mean doing it with a gargoyle who was old enough to be her father, it's no wonder he came after her. He probably thought he'd get lucky again."
Lana felt her heart plunge. What did her mother say? It couldn't be true; she wouldn't say things like that about her.
"Oh I quite agree." Angela spoke. "I mean, first she has it off with the first sexy guy she comes across and does it with him numerous times, then she gets all sad and wimpy about smashing his face in."
"Dirty little bitch!"
"She probably enjoyed it anyway. Lord knows she certainly doesn't seem to care who she does it with."
"We should invite Brooklyn and Lexington over sometime. I'm sure that after a little coaxing, Lana would be more than willing to spread her legs out for them."
That was it! Lana felt her heartbreak and she charged into the living room. But when she did… She found herself back in the warehouse where Thailog had held her captive.
Lana screamed and tried to run back where she had come from, but the door had disappeared.
Suddenly, a loud rumbling laughter came from the shadows and Lana froze.
'No,' she pleaded. 'Please God no, please.'
"No, not God my young angel," Thailog said as he emerged from the shadows fully healed and restored. "Just your beloved."
Lana looked down and screamed again when she saw she was naked, as was Thailog.
In a blind panic, she slammed her fists and talons against the wall and broke it down. The other side of the wall had nothing but darkness. Lana didn't care though as she could feel Thailog's hot breath on her backside even now.
She ran as fast as she could on all fours but no sooner had she stepped through the wall, she fell into the darkness. She screamed as she tried to glide but there was no wind to carry her.
Finally, she landed on something soft followed by a sigh of content but it was not from her. She turned and cried when she was she was lying on top of Thailog, only he was much larger than before, at least five feet taller.
He grinned down at her. "Darling," he crooned and grabbed her.
Lana wept as he kissed her.
As he kissed her lips, she felt parts of his flesh start to come away. She yelped and when he pulled back, she got a good look at him.
"AAAAARRRRGGGGGHHHHHH!"
His face was as it had been when she had left him in the park. His skull broken with his cheekbones lodged out of place, his horns broken off, his eye swollen and bleeding and even some of his teeth missing. He looked like something that had gone through Hell itself.
"I'll always love you," he said with spit and blood drooling out of his mouth and moved to kiss her again.
"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
Lana screamed as she woke up sweating. She breathed shallowly for about a minute until her breathing went back to normal.
Lana buried her face in her hands and wept. Gabriel had helped her ease her suffering by making her feel clean again but… Thailog still haunted her dreams and thoughts.
She could still feel him as if he were sitting right beside her.
Feeling anxious she looked around and for one moment she thought she saw a shape that could have been Thailog. She hurried to turn on the bedside lamp and illuminate the room. She checked to make sure but it was only the curtains.
She breathed deeply and wished that Gabriel was with her now as she needed his love and company.
Unable to sleep anymore she got up out of bed and decided to see what her mother and grandmother was doing.
She made her way down to the living room on the top floor but stopped when she heard the voices of her mother and Aunt Angela.
She froze.
She knew that her mother and aunt would never talk about the kind of stuff like she'd heard in her dream but even so, this scene was a little too familiar for her. She turned back and went downstairs to grab a bite to eat.
It took her a while because with every passing shadow and every creak on the stairs, she thought that Thailog was nearby.
She tried hard to be brave but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't find the light switch fast enough in every room.
Finally, she reached the kitchen and after quickly switching on the light she went to the fridge to find a snack.
'I hope Jarred left me at least something in this fridge,' she hoped. She wondered if Broadway was related to by blood and not just by him being Aunt Angela's mate. He and Jarred both seemed to bear the same bottomless hunger with the only difference being that whenever Jarred ate something, he went out of his way to burn off the calories by getting into all sorts of mischief that usually involved him running for his life.
So sweet, Thailog's words ran through her and she cringed again. 'Please God make it stop!'
She concentrated on finding something to eat but every little thing she looked at reminded her of him. The apple crumble reminded her of his face after she had finished smashing it with the stone, the milk was like his snow white hair, the cherries like his red eyes and…
Lana slammed the door of the fridge and slid to the floor crying miserably.
'Please, why won't it stop?' She cried, hugging herself.
She looked around the kitchen hoping for something or anything that would give her release, but there was nothing but… She stopped when her eyes rested on a bottle of vodka in her grandmother's drink cabinet.
Lana slowly got up and walked to the cabinet. She softly stroked the glass door for a while just staring at the drink. It was a strong alcohol; you didn't have to be a genius to know that. She wondered if perhaps…
Lana mentally slapped herself. She couldn't believe she was even considering this. She wasn't an alcoholic; she had never even tasted alcohol before except…
Care for a drink, Thailog's voice came out of nowhere and yet everywhere as she remembered the night when he and she had first made love.
'No,' Lana thought angrily but still ashamed. 'We never made love, we just mated. You have to be in love to make love.'
Yet she couldn't forget how gentle, strong and incredible he had been that night. Her every memory of him sent shivers of desire, disgusts and shame through her.
Lana opened the cabinet and pulled out a single bottle of the potent drink. It was only one bottle and Demona rarely drunk anymore. She only kept the bottle in case of company, small as that chance might be. No one would notice its absence.
Lana swallowed nervously and pulled the cork out of the bottle. She sniffed its aroma and paused.
'I shouldn't be doing this,' she thought. 'I can't drink. I don't… '
You know you love it. She remembered the look on Thailog's face when he had said that while nibbling her.
Lana shuddered and gripped the bottle so tight that cracks began to appear over it as it threatened to shatter. Lana paused and took a small sip.
Demona has used to drink quite often when she had been on her own, when she wanted to forget her past and all the misery in it. So she had made sure to get the strongest drinks she could find to help her do so.
Lana felt dizzy as she took a longer sip and engulfed nearly a quarter of the bottle. The drink worked its stuff on her and she felt… better.
She didn't feel great but it felt like the drink had taken some of the edge away from her nightmares. Her mind felt like it was in a haze like when you're trying to look at something through a thick fog.
Lana snorted for no apparent reason and took another bottle from the cabinet and started to make her way back up the stairs to her room. This time she didn't bother to turn the lights on or off, she didn't even notice whether they were on or off.
She slipped once or twice on the steps and banged her knee on them, but her mind was so fuzzy that it didn't even register the pain.
She walked back up to her room and closed the door behind her, clutching both bottle to her chest as if they were her only salvation, her only relief for the pain.
She took another drink, and then another and another. She felt the whole world melt around her, along with all her pains and troubles.
Lana giggled drunkenly, sipped her grandmother's vodka and slowly slipped into a peaceful oblivion.
The End… For Now.