(A/N: Sorry for the delay, guys, but I'm officially back. Updates should continue as scheduled.)

"Are you sure about going to this circus?" Sherlock asked Greg, making the hunter flinch back at the sudden proximity.

"Oi, Sherlock, I'm just trying to do my job here," Greg said, stepping aside and moving about the flat, trying to find his bag of supplies. "The job you gave me, I might add. And yeah, the circus is a bit public, but it's an enclosed space and there won't be too much opportunity for Shan to try and pull something. I'll be okay if I watch my back and be careful."

"Maybe you should take John with you."

"Okay, Sherlock," Greg said, turning around to look the bloody angel in the eye. "I think that you and John need to talk about your fetish with him hunting. It's getting a little ridiculous and it's starting to make everyone else uncomfortable."

Sherlock rolled his eyes. "I'm just concerned for your welfare. Shan is a dangerous demon."

"First of all, bullshit that you're concerned with my welfare. Second of all, I know she's a dangerous demon. She's a Priority One possession, idiot. She won't be anything but dangerous. Third of all, you hired me to do a job, and I will bloody well do it. So get out of my way and give me back my bag, I know that you hid it."

Sherlock scowled and Greg's bag materialized. "Fine. Do it your way. Don't come crying to me when you find yourself in over your head."

… …

"So how well do you know Soo Lin?" Greg asked John on their way to the museum. Molly had decided to head to the library and do some research instead, and Greg jumped up to take her place. He could use a little bit more practical knowledge on the demon he would soon be hunting.

John shrugged. "I've worked with her a few times. We don't exactly go out drinking on our days off. She's a very private person, doesn't talk about anything but the job, but she's trustworthy enough."

"I'll take your word for it," Greg allowed. "But what does an antiquities curator know about demonic possession?'

John offered a rueful grin. "Honestly, I've never wanted to ask."

… …

Soo Lin served them tea in her office and sat silently while they explained the particular job.

"Shan," she said softly. "I suppose it was only a matter of time before she came back." She didn't elaborate, but instead went to a bookshelf and pulled out a dusty volume with Chinese characters on the spine.

John exchanged a glance with Greg but neither of them interrupted.

"China is a place of many different legends and histories," she said, holding the book like it was something very precious. "Some of them contradict each other, but there is one that stands strong. They say it is as old as China itself, that this tale was told by the very first men who settled on the rivers." Soo Lin opened the book. "This is the story of Shan."

Greg opened his mouth to say something, but John nudged him and frowned. It was always best to let Soo Lin speak at her own pace.

"They say many things about Shan," she said quietly. "But one thing is for certain, she is a parasite. She corrupts people, brainwashes them, turns them into her minions and soldiers. Then she drains the world around her. She steals and takes and destroys, leeching whatever resources she can for herself, growing stronger and stronger and stronger as she does so." Soo Lin turned a page in her book. "Years ago, my brother and I were orphaned. We had no livelihood and the streets were...well, it wouldn't have been noticed if two children simply disappeared. Unwilling to risk that life, we turned to someone we thought might help us."

"Shan," Greg prompted, ignoring John's glare.

Soo Lin looked very small, heavy with shame a regret. "She was leading a smuggling ring. She was moving thousands and thousands of pounds worth of drugs into Hong Kong. My brother and I…we smuggled for her. In return, we were given food, clothes, wealth and prosperity. But…Shan corrupts. It wasn't long before my brother stopped acting like himself. He grew distant, cold, when he was once so happy and free spirited. He wouldn't speak with me anymore, he only had eyes for Shan. And…I knew what Shan was, and I didn't want to lose myself the way my brother had."

She shut the book. "I got away, but I couldn't do so until after the Reveal. Shan was no longer a crime boss to outsiders, but the demon that her soldiers knew her to be. Happily, my guardian angel revealed himself to me as well, and he helped me get away. I could not save my brother, but I was able to leave Shan behind me."

She gave the book a long look, glanced at John, and slowly put the book away. Greg could read hesitation in her every move, but for the life of him he couldn't figure out what might be causing it.

She looked up and met Greg's eyes for the first time. "I do not know you, Mr. Lestrade, but I know that you are a good hunter. Shan is not a demon to be taken lightly. She is not like the others. She does not lie or manipulate or play with your mind. She tells you every dark truth, voices your every fear until it corrupts you. Then, she either decides to keep you, or kill you. And Mr. Lestrade, if she does corrupt you, pray, pray to whatever God you fear most, that she chooses to kill you."

… …

"Well that was terrifying," Greg said bluntly the second they left the museum.

"Yeah, that was…that was really genuinely scary," John agreed. He nodded and quickly said, "Well good luck with the hunt, I have exorcist things to do."

"Are you trying to escape?"

"Hey, the hunting is your job, mate. Have fun."

… …

Abandoned by John, Greg sat down at a small café and started planning the hunt. He took out a small pocket notebook and started jotting a few things down, beginning with some notes about the meeting with Soo Lin and their shared history.

That was… quite the coincidence. But, once upon a time, Greg had been a police officer and was by nature extremely wary of coincidences. They tended to come back and bite you in the arse if you ignored them for too long.

He set it aside for now, but didn't put it out of his mind. If nothing else, he could always go back to Soo Lin and mine her for a bit more information.

Next he outlined several plans of attack. He had it on fairly reliable information that Shan would be at the circus tomorrow night, so that was when he planned to confront her.

Before then, he had to lay a trap. He doubted that rushing at her guns blazing would be all that effective.

According to the information that Sherlock got from one of his fellow angels (Mycroft, Greg thought his name was. Sherlock complained about him nearly constantly) Shan was leading the Black Lotus Gang. A few phone calls to his old friend Sally Donovan and Greg knew way more about Chinese smuggling rings than any person should have the right to.

But he broke it down like this:

Shan possessed the leader of the smuggling ring.

Soo Lin's brother was in the smuggling ring. (Helpful? Maybe.)

The smuggling ring masqueraded as a circus.

The circus would be performing tomorrow night only before returning to China.

Shan would be there at the performance.

And basically all that told Greg was that he had a very big job to do and a very limited amount of time to do it.

… …

Molly was a bit hopeless when she was surrounded by books. She tended to get distracted very quickly and never actually got as much done as she intended.

It wasn't her fault! All the books were just sitting there, holding their secrets, looking at her with their pleading eyes.

Never mind that books didn't actually have eyes, she still felt them looking.

Every time she tried to focus on her task, another idea popped into her head, demanding that another book be searched for.

She was nearly lost in the stacks when she was interrupted by an unknown voice with a pleasant Irish lilt. "Can I help you at all?"

Molly looked at the man and flushed, a little bit embarrassed to be caught wandering aimlessly when she was supposed to be getting that research done for Sherlock.

"Oh, no, I'm alright," she said. The stranger was still there, smiling at her politely, so she felt compelled to ask, "Do you work here?"

"Oh, yeah," he said, laughing slightly. He really did have a nice laugh, Molly thought. "Sorry, yes. I'm a librarian here." He held out a hand. "I'm Jim."

Molly beamed and shook Jim's hand. "Nice to meet you," she said. "I'm Molly."

… …

"I'd been doing some research before we came here," John said, barging into Soo Lin's office. He had doubled back to the museum right after parting from Greg. "And I know what that book is."

Soo Lin abruptly looked guilty, glancing at the book sitting inconspicuously on the shelf. "I wasn't sure…" she said, shifting in her seat. "I didn't want to take the risk."

"What risk, Soo Lin?" John asked, sitting in front of her and putting on his 'Trust me, I'm a doctor' voice.

"Shan knows that I have the book," Soo Lin blurted out after a long moment of silence. "Or at least, if we capture her, she'll know that I helped."

"And you fear her."

"Anyone who values their life would!" she snapped, twisting her hands in her lap. "I do not doubt that Mr. Lestrade is a great hunter. But if he fails, Shan would go after to me. And I am not ready to die, John."

John reached across her desk, not taking her hand, simply offering, letting her know that he was there, that he understood. "Correct me if I'm wrong," he began sincerely. "But that's a very old copy of an even older book, and it contains a spell that can trap Shan long enough for a hunter to act."

Soo Lin hesitated, then nodded. "I—well, my brother really, became trusted soldiers of Shan. We were allowed into the more guarded parts of the operation. She had the book in her possession. I didn't know what it was when I stole it, just that she kept it safely guarded. Before I left, I just thought…it would be better that I have it than Shan. I almost did not make it out with my life, but I had a good guardian angel. He helped me, kept me safe. I was able to bring it with me to England, and I have been hiding it in plain sight ever since." Soo Lin offered a small smile. "Part of me dreamed that one day I would be able to use it against Shan, but I have never had enough courage for such an act."

John smiled. "It's alright. It's just-" John straightened up. "Soo Lin, you can trust us. We are going to take down Shan. We're going to give her to the archangels and make sure that she pays for everything she has done. I understand if you don't want to entrust the book to us, but if you could just copy down the spell-"

"It's in Chinese," she pointed out. "A translation would not be nearly as effective."

John grimaced, knowing it to be true. How many exorcisms had he conducted in the original Latin and Hebrew, after all?

There was a tense moment before Soo Lin finally nodded. "I will help," she said, sounding surprisingly confident for her wavering moments before. "I will read the spell. I will help you capture Shan."

"Alright," John said, nodding. "Sounds like a plan."

… …

For Greg, the next day passed in a bit of a blur. It was hour after hour of preparation and worrying, of fending off Sherlock and going over facts with John (who seemed convinced that Soo Lin had something that would help, although he wasn't sharing details), of pointedly ignoring Irene and nodding politely while Molly blathered on about some handsome librarian that she met while she was researching.

He felt a small pang at that, not that he would admit it to anyone. After all, he was quite a bit older than Molly and it was his own damn fault for never asking her to get coffee or anything.

Oh well, he reflected. Just another regret to add to the list. He'd worry about it when he wasn't about to risk his life taking down an ancient demon with more power than anything he had ever faced before.

Including Hope. Which really did not make him feel great about his plan.

Admittedly, his plan was slightly ridiculous. And it probably wasn't going to work. But it was the best he had and they were just going to have to give it a shot.

He enlisted John's help in getting everything ready and that if absolutely no one screwed up, it might just work.

Maybe.

Probably not, but Greg took comfort in knowing that Heaven was on his side, just in case he died horribly.

… …

Sherlock took a step back once the actual hunt began.

He didn't know why he had pushed so hard at Greg, had tried to throw John into the line of fire.

Well, he did know, but he didn't like the reason.

In truth, Sherlock had wanted to shelter John. He had wanted to wrap him up in a big fluffy blanket and tuck him away somewhere he would be safe. He wanted to pull John away from this entire mess and ensure that he lived a long and happy life, safe from demons where he would live and smile every day and want to be around Sherlock and spend time with him and… this was just ridiculous. Sherlock had to stop.

So Sherlock decided to do the exact opposite, to convince himself that these thoughts were merely thoughts, mild worries for a friend he had grown somewhat attached to as he spent too much time on Earth.

He tried to throw John into the fray. He gave made sure that Molly gave John the blessed bullet, made sure that John would have to put himself in danger to help capture Hope.

Then, when Greg was preparing to hunt again, Sherlock could only offer up John's services. If Sherlock could put John in danger and stand back and watch events unfold without remorse…well, that meant he wasn't as affected by John as he thought he was.

Right?

Because these couldn't be feelings.

That was ridiculous. Angels didn't have feelings. Not like humans did.

And if they started to…if angels gave in to desire and passion and human vice…

They lost their Grace.

And from there, they Fall.

Sherlock was not ready for a Fall.

He wouldn't do it. Not for anyone.

Not even for John.

… …

Greg walked into the circus, wondering if he was in the right place.

Then the show started and it was creepy as fuck, so he figured that he probably was.

A drumbeat. A grand entrance, and then, wordless, Shan stood before him.

It was definitely Shan. There was that same feeling. That coldness, that emptiness. The absence of life, of light, of anything resembling love.

She was in position. Greg pulled out his phone and sent a quick message, praying to whatever deity that was listening that this stupid plan worked.

… …

John got the message.

"Alright," John said, getting Father Dimmock's attention. The young priest had jumped on the chance to help when John had made tentative inquiries for assistance. "Begin."

In unison, the two dozen men and women they had gathered for the hunt uncapped their bottles of holy water, turn them over so the water spilled on the ground, and began to pray.

Soo Lin stood beside John, looking terrified to the very core of her being.

He had given her one last chance to bow out before the show began, but she had pressed her lips together and shook her head.

"No," she said. "This is the price I pay. It is my fault that my brother fell to Shan's power, and I abandoned him with her. This is the only way I can forgive myself for those dark years of my life."

John had felt that such redemption wasn't really necessary, but in truth they couldn't actually do this without her, so he didn't really try to convince her to leave.

She opened her book, flipped to the right page, and began to read.

… …

Greg knew that something, at least, was happening once Shan started to laugh.

"Foolish humans," she said gleefully. "As if Christian ground could ever actually stop me. I am still free to leave this place."

Which meant that the consecration started. Two dozen people, circling the building, creating a ring of holy ground as the circus had gone on.

"Well, yeah," Greg pointed out, speaking up over the confusion. "But you are anchored here now. You can't leave this realm, or even your host, really, until you leave the consecrated ground."

"So you are behind this? It was silly of you to reveal yourself, hunter." Shan said, shedding some of her costume. "Do you really think that you can stop me from walking out of this building and into freedom?"

"Ah, well, I've got someone else on that. I think. At least, I've been promised that it would be worked out."

As he spoke, Shan's movements grew sluggish. Her eyes opened wide once she realized that something was happening. "That girl! I never should have let her live! She will suffer greatly for this. Jiju! Go! Stop him now!"

Which was when the ninja attacked Greg.

Although, he thought, even after he was grappling with the man, ninjas were Japanese, so he guessed that Jiju wasn't really one. He was bloody strong, though.

Greg ducked under Jiju's arms and rammed his shoulder into the man's gut. He went down for a moment, but got his breath back and jumped to his feet again.

Greg desperately hoped that there wasn't an extremely brief time limit on whatever John had worked out with Soo Lin, because this was going to take a bit.

Jiju landed a good hit on Greg's jaw, which hurt like the devil but, thankfully, didn't knock him unconscious. He recovered as quickly as he could, realized that he had been making this unnecessarily difficult for himself, whipped out his gun, and shot Jiju in the foot.

"Sorry mate," Greg said, panting. "But I've got a job to do tonight."

Everyone else in the audience had cleared out, so that just left Greg, standing there tired, Jiju, bleeding on the ground, and Shan, struggling against an invisible force.

He took out his special handcuffs and tried to go for Shan.

But fuck, if it wasn't difficult.

Shan was doing everything she could to will him away. He could feel her pushing, prodding at his mind, at his strength.

Really, hunter, her voice whispered, smooth as silk. Are you sure you wish to capture me? If you free me, I could give you everything you have ever desired. Wealth, power, security. I always keep my promises, hunter.

Greg took another step forward.

A washed out police officer, she continued. With a wife who has fallen out of love with him. You couldn't catch criminals, you couldn't trap demons, and you can't even hunt them without an angel's help.

Another step.

It would be so much easier just to give me all your worries. I can fix them for you. I can keep you safe from your own insecurities, from your own failings.

Last step.

The sound of the handcuffs snapping closed around her wrists broke the tension, and Greg let out a big breath in relief.

"You will not survive this," Shan started to warn ominously. Greg reached into his pocket, pulled out a roll of duct tape, and put it to use in shutting Shan up.

"Yeah, I'm kind of tired of all the cryptic shit surrounding you, I'd appreciate not having to hear any more of it." Greg patted her on the head and pulled out his mobile to text John.

… …

"He's got her," John said, reading the message.

Soo Lin's legs wobbled and she finally sunk to her knees in relief. "It's over," she breathed. "It's truly over. I know you will take care of her, John," Soo Lin said, looking up at John like he hung the stars and the moon. "I know you will drive her from this place."

John smiled, a bit uncomfortable. "I'll certainly do my best."

And because he was having a moment with someone, Sherlock just had to materialize out of nowhere.

"Hey, you got the demon?" he asked rather bluntly.

"Greg does, inside," John sighed. "So where were you in all this?"

"Watching," Sherlock said cryptically. "And busy with other things. Very interesting. I'll tell you about them later. Let's get the demon back to the chapel now. Quickly, doesn't do to keep Heaven waiting."