So, my "banning from the computer" has been lifted, and the prom was a success...my friend's b-day party was great...and i have the ohio trip next week...we get to dress like Amish ppl! and, if we're not sure, we shouldnt wear it. lol! and, if we have any problems...we must tell MT or Willer...even if its cramps...so, i really hope the trip goes as well as planned...read on, and hopefully...enjoy.
Disclaimer: i own nothing, cept, heaven, hell, and the characters that go with it...
Chapter, the seventeenth
a week later
Alex was walking through the forest, she knew that the deviliquium was going to be flushing completely out of her system soon. She had killed almost two thousand people the whole time she was in this form. In a span of four weeks, she killed two thousand people. Walking through the woods, her booted heels made not a sound. As she continued to walk, she came to a clearing where a waterfall was that was bathed in moonlight. She looked at the full moon and sighed. She brought out her scythe and studied it in the calm moonlit clearing. She could already feel her body purifying the Deviliquium as she thought of it.
Suddenly, her ears began to ring, tears pouring out of her eyes. Her stomach felt like someone was ripping holes in her intestines. Her legs felt like jelly, collapsing underneath her as she fell to the ground. She let out an unearthly scream as the air around her began to shimmer and glow. The clip that had held her dark hair burst into a thousand pieces, her demonically colored hair slowly starting to change back to the customary midnight blue that her hair normally was. It felt like venom was running through her veins, and as she screamed, the sweat pouring out of her body was tinted red with the deviliquium seeping out.
When the transformation was finished, she lay on the ground panting from the exertion of having such an immense change occur on her body. Her black wings were stretched out behind her and her black dress lay rumpled on the ground around her. Slowly, she sat up and waited. It wasn't long before she heard the rustling of something walking through the trees and under brush around her.
As she sat and watched the green growth around her, Kaori stepped cautiously out of the trees. She had her staff at the ready just in case Alex hadn't changed back and the major fluctuations of power were just a trick to pull unsuspecting deities into a trap. Behind her stood Vicky, resolute and proud in her midriff belly shirt and her cheerleader-like short frilled skirt.
"So, you survived?" Kaori asked, softly as her speaking would bring back the demon side of the woman before her.
"I guess so. Did you feel this cold after you survived the deviliquium?" Alex was broaching onto the subject. She knew that not many people understood the true pain that deviliquium could cause; except those who survived and the only people to survive stood facing each other.
"Actually, I felt like my body was on fire. You feel cold?" Kaori walked over to the weakened Goddess and put a hand on her forehead. She immediately pulled her hand back and hissed, shaking her hand furiously. Alex's head was freezing.
"You're fucking freezing! Put on your god damn cloak!" Kaori screamed at Alex, growling softly when her tirade was finished and Alex had donned her cloak. The two Goddess' helped their fellow Goddess to her feet and marched her in front of them.
"Ya know, Alex, Darien is gonna have a nice long talk with you." Vicky said, waving her hand in the air to transport the three of them into heaven. They walked her down the hall; the occupants of the God's Ledge giving the girls a wide-berth on account of the Goddess of Death being with them. Kaori and Vicky walked Alex into the cafeteria where the five pilots and Darien were huddled around a tray of meats and fruits with dipping sauces. Immediately, Nancy saw Alex and rushed at her before throwing her arms around Alex's neck while crying and praying and thanking god all at the same time.
The cafeteria lady walked over, her white apron over a golden dress shimmered as she walked. Cecilia was her name. "Welcome back, Alex."
While the women rejoiced the safe return of the resident Goddess of Death, the six men were too preoccupied with a word puzzle.
"A seven letter word for a female higher in status then angels." Duo mumbled, staring at the cross word.
"Goddess." Heero supplied, leaning back and stretching his arms. As he leaned back and over the chair, he spied a group of girls hovering around something. As he caught a glimpse inside the huddle, he saw Alex.
"An even square root of four, three letters." Trowa said.
"Two." Darien replied, grabbing a piece of banana.
Heero looked at the oblivious men around him. All of them were concentrating on the puzzle and didn't see any of the commotion around them. He sighed, "Alex is back."
"Heero, that's not a country that is located in the Mediterranean that is shaped like a boot." Duo said, finally looking up at Heero and away from the puzzle.
"Duo, Alex is back. She's here, alive, and well. Turn around."
The six boys turned around and came face to face with the dark blue eyes of the Goddess of Death. She was staring at them in a strange way. But the moment was short lived as Nancy grabbed her hand and led her down one of the halls, her silver and black dress fluttering around her ankles.
The five pilots shared a look. Darien was still looking at the door as the two heavenly beings passed through it, most likely going to his office/bedroom. Darien looked at the five boys. "I've got to go. You're all leaving later on."
"We're not going anywhere if Alex is here. Where are you going?" Duo said, standing up next to the God. He had taken on a sharper stance then he normally does as soon as Alex's name as mentioned. Since Alex had been infected by the deviliquium, Duo had been a lot more edgy, and he'd always been concerned about where the Goddess was and how she was doing. He'd practically always been in Heaven when he could find the time, hounding Vicky as well as Kaori for any news on the Goddess of Death.
"I have to have a talk with Alex. I mean, it's been almost two months since she's been here and Grim isn't getting any younger." Darien didn't make eye contact as he spoke. Instead, he started walking away which prompted the boys to follow him as he moved out of the cafeteria and into the main halls. They followed him past ornate doors, and strange multi-colored doors which had things coming from underneath them. He turned down a corridor that was mostly gold and silver and stopped in front of a set of double doors. Pushing them open, the six men were affronted by the sight of Alex in her black and silver dress pacing the room with Nancy, Vicky, Kaori, and a redhead standing off to the side and watching her as her face went from shocked, to disgusted, through anguished, and finally landed on ashamed and confused.
Her head turned as the door opened. "I'm not talking in front of the five of them." She continued to pace across Darien's office, going back to ignoring them as the same range of emotions echoed across her face. When nobody said or did anything, when nobody moved, her head came up and turned and caught the glances of the people surrounding her as they each turned their heads away from her as one. The only person who didn't turn their head was Duo.
He kept steady eye contact with Alex, even as her face fell into shame and confusion and stuck there. The only thoughts flying through her mind were, "I have no idea who he is anymore. What I felt before I was infected, it was strong and it was pulling me in. I could've hurt them when I was infected. I don't want to hurt them."
With that in mind, Alex turned to Darien. "What ever. I don't care whether they are in this room or not. I'll tell you what I need to tell you in front of everybody if need be." She took a deep breathe and continued, "You brought me here eight years ago. You trained me to be the Goddess of Death. You made me into the person I am today, and I thank you. But, when I almost nearly kill my friends, it's just over the top. And so, with that said, I am asking for a temporary leave of absence. I'll talk to Grim and ask if he'll continue with the work load. I've been away from Earth for too long. So, I'd like to get back to my roots and live life among the humans."
The room was silent. All eyes rested on the Goddess of Death. She stood, unwavering in her choice, not even beginning to wilt under the intense stare of the four girls, Darien, and the five pilots. Darien sighed and turned to the five pilots.
"I'm gonna ask that the five of you go back to the cafeteria. I'll talk to you afterwards. For now, I'd like to speak with Alex alone." Darien said, turning back to face Alex. Three of the five boys walked out, still having a need to know how Alex was and why she had made her request, but two steadfastly refused to vacate the premises.
Darien turned to Duo and Heero, "When I said the five of you, I meant, the five of you. Not the three of you."
"We're not leaving until we know what is going on here. Why is she asking for a temporary leave of absence?" Heero asked, unwavering in his disposition.
Alex decided to answer for herself, coming out of her silence, "I am asking for a temporary leave of absence because I killed a lot of people in a short amount of time. I'd like to get back in tune with myself before I go and continue my job. I need time to myself without everyone here riding up my ass, without the war, without soldiers, without demons, angels, or warriors. I need 'me time'."
"We have killed a lot of people as well, and you don't see any of us campaigning for a temporary leave of absence." Duo replied.
"Okay, so I'm sounding hypocritical, I'm allowed. But, when you guys are really hurt, can't you get a temporary leave of absence?"
Both the boys looked at each other, while Darien chose to keep his peace and watch as the argument took place. He knew that Alex had feelings for the two boys, if not intimate ones then casual ones, and she was choosing to go this path so that the two boys wouldn't be in any trouble should she fall back into the same mindset she'd been in for the past two months. Nothing more was said for a few minutes until Heero piped up with a very knowledgeable, "You're not hurt."
"I'm well aware that I'm not hurt. But, mentally, I'm not ready to go back to work yet. I can't do this job right now. While I'm down on Earth, I'll ask Grim to handle my job. Not too long, but not too short."
"We'll find you."
"Doubt that" Alex replied, facing Heero. "If I chose to blend in with life, you would have no idea how to find me Because…I would look like every other human and I wouldn't be leaving a trail cause I'd be using a different name and until I chose to reveal myself, no one would know where. I. was." She shrugged, "So, saying, 'we'll find you' isn't going to do anything."
Heero was quiet for a few seconds, staring at the floor. Suddenly, he looked up catching her eyes. "I know what you look like as a human."
"Fat chance that'll do ya. You saw me when I was seven years old. There is a lifetime between seven year old me and fifteen year old me. There is no way that you could pinpoint who I am just by going on the memory of my seven year old self."
Duo decided to end this argument. He'd had enough with arguing about how they would or wouldn't find Alex. He wanted to know why the girl had taken such a scare to him. He hadn't done anything to her, yet she was acting timid around him like she really didn't know him anymore.
"Enough!" he yelled, and the room went dead quiet. Alex's face went three shades paler then it should've. He walked over to Alex and grabbed her face in his palms, forcing her to look into his eyes. As soon as they made eye contact, Alex began to squirm and attempted to break free of his touch. "Why do u flinch when I look at you? Why did Darien, who is God, flinch when I spoke to him, stood next to him, joked around with him? I thought we were good friends, but right before you were infected, something happened and now you just want to be away from me. You both can't look me in the eye, you both flinch when I'm near, and you can't stop attempting to get out of my grasp. I'm not going to hurt you. I would never hurt you."
Alex continued to struggle, but she didn't struggle a lot, just enough that her discomfort in the position she was in showed through. As she stared into Duo's violet eyes, a calming sensation came over her, as if it were a cloak to shield her from everything bad in the world. But with the cloak came a metal net, weighted down and pad locked to the floor. She struggled and struggled, but the net held strong. As a last ditch effort to free herself from being restrained, she mentally threw all her weight into the net and threw it off herself. While mentally throwing off the net, she physically jumped away from Duo, around Heero and backed against the door, her eyes wide with fear.
Duo was shocked at her actions, "Alex, what-"
"I won't be contained. I won't be held. I won't! I won't!" And with that said, she disappeared from sight, not to be seen or heard from for months to come.
Duo stared at the spot where Alex disappeared before turning his attention to Darien. "Am I missing something? Did I say something wrong?"
Heero had stayed quiet throughout the ordeal. He knew that something was up with the Goddess of death. The only question to ask was what was up? He, as well as Duo, waited for Darien's response. When Darien chose to grace them with his response, it was with a blank, dull tone that he answered.
"She has a secret that she doesn't know about yet. She's read about said secret in books in the main library here on the God's Ledge, but she can't comprehend the meaning of them. She's confused, and so are you, Duo. You have more power over her, then anybody alive at this very moment. But, that is all I'll say at the moment. She'll enlighten you when she chooses. In order to understand what the problem is, you have to wait for her to be ready. The roles, Duo Maxwell, have been changed after two thousand years."
Not another word was said between three of them. Duo looked confused, Heero looked even more confused, and Darien looked indifferent. Darien, in his indifference, walked out of the room, down the hall, and decided to leave the two boys to their own ways as he went to go speak with the other three pilots. Things were going to get a lot clearer in the next year.
-end 4 now-
questions? comments? Comments would be very nice...i didnt get any feedback for the last chapter...did i lose ppl?did i gain ppl? did u like it? Did you hate it? Did it make you scream and throw a fit? are you confused?Should i stop asking questions now? Are you mad at me cause im asking too many questions cause i know i am? ill stop now...