Balloons, Cakes and Demons

Part 1

The demon had flashed to the edge of a woods. The pupils of its eyes dilated to allow it to see better in the darkness. It adjusted its grip on the child in its jaws, careful not to drip its acidic saliva on him. It did not want the child to be harmed. It made its way into the woods.

The trees reached high up into the sky, their thick foliage covering the ground below in darkness. Here and there, tiny patches of light could be seen. No plants grew on the floor. The woods were devoid of any chatter from small animals or the chirps of birds. Nothing good lived here. Dry leaves crackled under the demon's feet as it padded along a path, navigating itself around the trees, across a small stream with foul smelling water, and through the underbrush.

A cottage of sorts stood in the center of the clearing. The demon sniffed the air and trotted in its direction. The hut was made out of hundreds, perhaps thousands of white, gleaming bones held together by magic. A doorway suddenly opened up for the demon to enter.

Inside was dank and musty, and the air smelled of death and decay. Brittle bones littered the floor, crunching and snapping in the silence as the demon made its way to the room at the back of the hut. As it approached the entryway to the back room, it could hear the wails coming from it. It went inside, dropping the child on the floor roughly, and stepped back, sitting down on its haunches.

The room was the only one with light. Flames danced and crackled from the bone-made grate. Above it, a cauldron bubbled with something thick and foul, the very smell nearly making the demon's eyes water. At the end of the room were wooden cages holding several children who were crying. Some were in shock, rocking back and forth, their arms around their bodies. Their clothes were torn and ripped in some places, their faces were smudged with dirt and dried blood.

One of the shadows moved, stepping away from the wall, turning into a solid form of an elderly woman. The children who were in the wooden cages let out louder cries when they saw her. She reveled in the scent of their fear. It made their flesh even more tender.

"What do we have here, my pet?" she said to the demon, waltzing over to the child her demon had brought back.

The newest addition brought by the demon blinked up at her without a trace of fear in the bright green eyes. The hag could smell the powers in the child. There was far more magic in this child than those scrawny brats in the cages. She bent down to eye level, her long plait streaked with grey falling over one shoulder. Her cold, pale eyes raked over the child hungrily.

"Such an adorable baby," she cooed, reaching out with a wrinkled, spotted hand. Fingernails as sharp as knives trailed down the chubby cheek, hard enough to draw blood. The child barely flinched.

"Very brave as well," she mused, bringing up her hand to her mouth, tasting the blood on her fingertips. "Sweet like honey indeed."

"You've done well, my pet," she crooned to the demon, patting it on the head. "Of course, the older child would have been better. Much more magic in him but this one will do."

The demon growled.

"Yes, he will do very nicely indeed."

"Okay, this bites," said Paige, frustration clear in her tone as she threw up her hands. "There is nothing in here on the demon! Nada. Zilch."

"You've only been looking for ten minutes," Phoebe pointed out from her position on the floor. The scrying table which she had used for cover had been partially eaten away by the acid. She decided to make do with the floor, spreading the city map, a national map, and a world map before her side by side. She held the crystal above them, hoping it will drop to a location soon.

"I looked through this Book before now, and let me tell you, we seriously need to update this antique." Paige turned back to the 'antique' once more, flipping the pages.

Phoebe held back a smile. No matter how many times they declared the Book useless, they always came back to it for details. She had lost count of how many times she had called it useless whenever she couldn't find anything on a demon that attacked or when she found something that she already knew.

"Anything on the crystal?" Paige asked, after a moment of silence, punctuated by the turning of a page.

"Nothing. It's like they just disappeared from the face of the earth." Phoebe shook her head. Her arm was beginning to get tired. She switched hands.

"That or it took him to the Underworld," Paige said wisely. "Unless it surfaces again, we probably won't find it or Chris this way."

Phoebe dropped the crystal on the map, rubbing her face with her hands. She was feeling just as frustrated as her sister. She didn't even need her empathy to know.

"We need more resources," she said absently, sitting back, staring at the maps. "If the demon is not in the book, then where are we going to find more information about it?"

"Resources... resources..." Paige was half listening to her sister when something came to her mind. It was right on top of her head, only she couldn't quite put it together yet.

"It's not like we have a whole lot of other resources to use except for the Book and Leo," Phoebe was saying. "Unless, we have a stash of books hiding around here that just happen to be about demons who kidnap babies."

"Books..." Paige's face lit up. "Books! That's it!"

"That's what?" Phoebe asked, seeing her sister's excitement.

"Books!"

"Books," Phoebe echoed slowly. "You mind slowing down here and explaining?"

"Magic School has tons of resources we can use," said Paige quickly, closing the Book. "I can orb there and find something about our little demon in the library."

"Paige, that is brilliant." Phoebe got up, dusting off her pants. "I'll come with you."

The sisters were about to orb out when they heard the doorbell rang. They stared at each other in puzzlement. Who would be coming at a critical time like this? When the doorbell rang the second time, realization dawned on them belatedly.

The party!

TBC...