Demons

(Saturday Night)

After Aziz notices Ben at a table in the corner of the library he walks up to him, "Hey."

"We're doing homework," Chad interrupts. "Ben can't talk right now."

"Yes," Ben follows his lead, smiling as he looks back at Aziz. "We're doing homework."

"Look. This will only take a minute," he comments before stepping forward. "It's just, I haven't seen you in class. Are you okay?"

"Yes," Ben frowns. "I'm having class out of class alone. Or, uh, not alone. A person." He wets his lips before confirming, "I'm fine."

"I mean, that's good," Aziz uneasily responds. "Because, after what happened Thursday—"

"I'm fine," Ben irritably responds.

Chad looks at him, "What happened Thursday?"

Ben turns toward him, but he fails to answer before facing Aziz again. Aziz doesn't speak, merely glancing between the two of them. "I'm fine," Ben says again.

"Okay," Aziz continues to frown. "Do you still need help with Sociology or Communications?"

Ben shakes his head, "No. I don't think so."

He nods, "Okay, then." and then he pauses before looking between them again. "See you later, I guess."

After he leaves Chad switches back to French, "So, what happened Thursday?"

Ben sighs, "Nothing. My father just came to see me."

Chad frowns, "Did something happen?"

"It's my father," Ben gives him a look. "Of course something happened."

"No. I mean, like, how bad was it?"

"What makes you think it was bad?" Ben denies.

"By how he was acting," Chad raises his eyebrows. "How frustrated you are."

"What are you talking about?" Ben turns back to his notebook to look up the definitions on his phone. "I'm always frustrated."

Chad smiles, "Touché." before he laughs. "Hey. Maybe you just need to get laid."

"God," Ben emphasizes. "You know, I can't even think about having sex with Mal."

"Seriously?"

"Well, yeah." Ben shakes his head, "She's just so assertive and—" before he raises his hands and lets out a loud breath.

"Okay," Chad accepts, "but doesn't that just mean she's the kind of girl who would do all the work for you? That seems pretty awesome to me." He grins, "You could just lay back, relax, and let it happen."

Ben's frown deepens, "Maybe that's the problem. I'm just really bad at letting things happen." He picks his pencil back up, "Not that it matters. I don't think either of us are ready for that kind of thing yet, especially now."

"What makes you think she isn't?"

"Because," Ben says to bide time, but he finds it hard to say it without saying it. "She just had a bad fling once, okay?"

"Bad fling?"

"This translator sucks," Ben complains. "Can you tell me what this word is in French?"

Chad looks at the word, "Current? Like the ocean?" before he looks back at Ben. "Isn't that just courant?"

It takes a minute for Ben to say, "Found it." before he writes the French definition next to the English word. "I hate this. This is taking forever."

"Yeah," Chad agrees. "It must suck to have to actually pay attention to what you're writing instead of just copying straight from the glossary."

Ben narrows his eyes at him, "Shut up. You don't even do your own homework."

"Exactly," Chad counters. "I'm not the one trying to do homework." He grins again, "This must really suck for you."

Ben looks back down, "You are so empathetic right now."

"Thank you."

Ben swiftly turns back to him, noticing Chad trying not to laugh, and he can't help but grin in disbelief, "Fuck you."

"You did what with Mal?" Audrey exasperates.

Lonnie slowly answers, "Watched a movie."

"And gave her heat," Ruby finishes for her.

"Indirectly," Lonnie defends. "What's the big deal?"

"What's the big deal?" Audrey repeats. "You saw the court case. It was deemed that she wasn't even remotely human."

"Fairies are legally human," Lonnie frowns in response.

"Legally, yes, but they are not the creation of the Lord." Audrey quotes, "Deuteronomy. Chapter eighteen. There shall not be found among you an enchanter or a witch, for all that do these things are an abomination unto the Lord." She emphasizes, "These are not God's creatures. They are Satan's work. They are inherently evil, and Mal— no matter how much she claims she wants to change— is no different. It's in her DNA. You can't trust her."

Ruby unsurely comments, "Didn't you just tell me that you told Chad you trust that she'd tell you the truth?"

"Yeah," Audrey counters, "because the devil can tell the truth when it fits his means. If Mal really was worried about Ben and Chad, then there's no reason why she wouldn't tell me the truth. In fact, she'd have to if she wanted me to do her dirty work for her."

"I still don't get it." Lonnie gets back to the subject, "Why shouldn't I be spending time with Mal?"

"She's going to corrupt you," Audrey asserts. "She's evil. She's going to want to make you evil too."

"Okay," she softly speaks. "Mal joked about turning me to the dark side, but she's been really nice to me… You know, relatively speaking."

"Nice for a demon, you mean," Audrey interprets, "but don't you want better than that?" Lonnie eyes down at the floor. "Okay. Look." Audrey goes to sit next to her on the bed, "I'm just looking out for you. You know how immoral Mal is. Give it a week, and I bet she'll try to get with you."

"She's actually already tried to kiss me," Lonnie admits.

"You see," Audrey sighs. "That just proves my point."

"She was desperate for heat," Lonnie excuses. "That doesn't make her evil or immoral."

"No," Audrey accepts. "What makes her immoral is her sexual activity with other girls."

"People can't choose who they're attracted to," she defends, and she hurriedly continues before Audrey can speak. "Think about it. If it wasn't a sin for people to be with members of the same sex, would you ever kiss another girl?"

"No," Audrey firmly answers, "because I don't like girls, and the reason why that is is because I'm a true believer in God and I pray to remain pure. All homosexuality is is the devil whispering in your ear, because he hates the Lord's creation and wants us to stop reproducing and die off."

Lonnie shuts her eyes, "Sorry. This is too crazy for me." before she stands from the bed.

Audrey stands from it as well to takes hold of her arms, "I'm not crazy. This is reality." and she widens her eyes. "I admit it, everyone has their own personal demons, but that is far different from actually spending time with one."

"This is the part where you tell me Mal is a demon?" Lonnie predicts.

"Yes," Audrey confirms. "She is, and if you know what's good for you, you will stay far, far away from her."

Lonnie shakes her head, "I'm not even going to entertain this." before she takes a step back, Audrey's hands fall from her arms, and she turns around to exit the dorm.

Audrey stares at the closed door, "May God be with her."

- Next Up: Ben sees the doctor, headmistress asks Ben "Final Time", Ben's mother shows up, and Ben works on king stuff with Chad. I'm trying to get this fic done by the new year. Doubtful, but wish me luck.