Hellraiser: Beyond the Gates of Hell

Disclaimer: Well, well, well... My first Hellraiser fic. Look at that. It's about time I did one of these. Remember this, readers: I take CONSTRUCTIVE criticism, but not flamers. So kindly step away if you feel such an urge. This story is going to be written for the fun in it, but I have done as much research as one can. Clive Barker owns all things flesh and blood in Hellraiser, but I own the plot and the few characters he DIDN'T make. Well, since I got the okay, I want to dedicate this fic to laura 101 and Blue Kitsune. They're real hardcore Hellraiser romance fans! Gotta love that!

"The flesh endures the storms of the present alone, the mind those of the past and future as well as the present."

-Epicurus

"Do not bite at the bait of pleasure, till you know there is no hook beneath it."

-Thomas Jefferson

By: VampireQueenAkasha

We have such sights to show you...

Chapter Five: Love in All the Wrong Places

Alice had not slept a single minute.

She just remained in bed, her eyes wide and locked onto the pale ceiling overhead. Sleep had eluded her that night; she had been too worried about what might come through her bedroom door. Even though it was quiet, she still hadn't slept at all and the sun was shining through her window, nearly blinding her puffy, red eyes. Grumbling, Alice slowly and very quietly moved out of bed and down the darkened hallways where no light was shining through.

Alice looked around for the creatures, but there was no sign of them anywhere. The drapes of her windows were all pulled shut and everything seemed to be in its proper place. Whatever they were, they were gone, illusions or not. With some relief, Alice walked into the kitchen, finding the drapes pulled shut there too. It was a peculiar thing to have them shut, but she really didn't care. Regardless of whether or not she had imagined everything, they were gone.

"You should be careful, Alice ... "

The woman gave a startled shriek and whirled; Nikoletta was standing there, framed in the doorway with a deadly smile on her pale, white face. Alice moved quickly, snatched a knife from the utensil drawer and aimed it at the Cenobite.

"That cannot harm me, child," Nikoletta told her, the open throat wound creating an eerie rasp to her voice, like the sound of a terribly frightened little girl, "There are so many more ... elegant things made that can wrought pain."

Alice took a few cautious steps to the side, making no sudden movements, but not lowering her knife from the Cenobite, even though she had already proclaimed the uselessness of the weapon. "What are you?" she asked, her voice shaking in between calm and terror. "What the hell are you?"

"We can be your angels, or your worst nightmares in flesh," she answered, watching the frightened human like a tiger stalking prey, "Which will it be, Alice?"

Alice slowly lowered the knife, though still kept it level and she struggled to keep her voice steady. "I didn't want this ... "

Nikoletta tilted her head to one side, a thoughtful look crossing her features. "You are lying."

"What?"

"You have wanted this," the Cenobite answered, "You've wanted it for a long time now. An escape, a path down a more darker and sensual road. I can feel it in your heart. You want to know our secrets and share our dark wonders. The only thing that is stopping you is your humanity, your doubts and your confusions. Your heart aches for the unknown, but your corrupted human mercy repels it. Such a shame too for one as innocent and pure as yourself."

Alice growled and her eyes burned with fury. She found the courage that she was seeking. "Stop fucking doing that!" she spat, "You think that it's okay to read other people's hearts and feelings, but it's not! Those are MY thoughts! Not yours! You have no right!"

Nikoletta chuckled softly and her next words carried menace that Alice knew was no where near empty, fierce and harsh. "I could peel away your face, split your skull open and read you just as easily as I am now. You are an open book, child. A book that yearns to be read."

Alice carefully looked around the kitchen, seeking out the other flesh-tattered creatures. "Where are your friends?" she demanded, her voice trembling.

"They are around should the situation merit ... " Nikoletta answered, moving silently across the kitchen like a black and white specter, "I was to remain here with you. To keep an eye on you until the master returns from his affairs."

Alice laughed and it sounded like someone on the verge of a hysterical breakdown. "Why? I'm not a goddamn child! You have no rig-"

Nikoletta turned immediately and Alice's voice caught in her throat at the unexpected gesture. The female's features were pitiless and yet, somewhere in those dark, black eyes was a fire of direct challenge, a restrained anger that she kept in check.

"You have said that twice and yet you have done nothing to stop me, Alice ... " she whispered, her dry voice sounding more rough and ugly now. After a brief moment, she closed her eyes, smiled calmly and resumed that cool, quiet persona she was famous for.

"Can I ask something then?" Alice finally asked, somewhat steadier this time.

"You may ... "

Alice gestured to her own throat and she spoke her words timidly. "Does that hurt?"

The question was bizarre and nothing that the Cenobite had every heard before. No human had ever asked such a thing of her because it was very obvious that she was in pain from the wounds. But to ask a question meant that the woman was either concerned for her or simply naive. Nikoletta frowned at her.

"Yes ... it does," she answered.

There was a soft hissing sound and the two turned toward the kitchen door where another Cenobite emerged, only she looked more human than the rest. Nikoletta inhaled sharply upon reflex and when she spoke, her asthmatic voice was no where near excited.

"Angelique ... "

The woman standing there was positively beautiful as far as Alice could tell. She must have been one of them wearing a human skin. There was that single beauty mark on Angelique's cheek that the woman continued to stare at.

"Nikoletta." the Cenobite acknowledged.

The feeling between the two seemed mutual and Alice could tell that this "woman" wasn't exactly favored among her kind. She also noticed that Nikoletta was now standing directly in front of her this time to hide the woman from the other Cenobite; it almost looked like a protective gesture. That or the open-wounded demon did not seem eager to share her with the other. Or ... there was some hidden threat with the demon in human flesh that Alice didn't fully comprehend just yet.

"It is good to see you, Angelique," she said.

Angelique's eyes locked onto Alice as she answered and they glittered with hunger, lust and many other emotions. Alice remained steady and strong against her, staring back with unflinching intensity. Whatever this "woman" was doing she wasn't going to falter.

"And you. Still wearing the old fashions, I see."

Nikoletta furrowed her white brow and stared at the other demon with suspicion. The stand off reminded Alice of a wary mongoose who had come face - to - face with a venomous cobra. "So. After all this time, what's the occasion?"

Angelique chuckled softly and moved into the kitchen, observing her surroundings with a bare hint of dismay. "Oh my ... it reeks with shame in here," she murmured.

Alice laughed indignantly. "Sorry, I left my red carpet in the basement that you destroyed."

Nikoletta sounded weary. "Alice ... " she warned.

Angelique, however, didn't seem afflicted by the sarcasm. Instead, she placed a finger on Nikoletta's shoulder, pushing her slightly to the side to get a better view at the human, smiling up and down. Alice didn't like the way she stared at her. She reminded her of those snotty little whores from her college days who would parade around the grounds, thinking that they owned the whole world around them and anyone they wanted.

"Ohh, this one has spirit!" Angelique gushed, touching Alice's cheek with one hand. "The Leviathan will be most pleased indeed with such a ... passionate soul."

Alice glared at her defiantly. "I have to GO to him first ... " she reminded her.

Angelique curled her lip up in a cruel gesture and she poked Alice hard in the cheek, nearly jabbing the bone. From the look on her beautiful face, Alice could tell that she wanted to rip her throat out. Instead, she calmed and smiled once more. "Yes... Your mother was smart, wasn't she?"

Alice watched as the demon sauntered back toward the doorway and Nikoletta scowled after her.

"Oh! Inform Xipe that I have a message for him," Angelique said, with a casual wave over her shoulder, "Tell him that the Leviathan wants a progress report very soon!"

Her soft voice carried her words with a suggestive manner to them, one that Alice sensed held more on her part than she really wanted. Nikoletta relaxed her shoulders when she sensed Angelique's presence had fully departed.

"She's nice." Alice murmured, sarcastically.

Nikoletta turned to face her. "You must not trifle with her anger, Alice," she warned, "Angelique is not as patient as we have come to be."

"I thought she was with you."

"Not entirely," Nikoletta answered, "We suspect that she wants hell for herself."

Alice stared at the Cenobite with shock and mute disbelief. What was she trapped in between?

O

Katie knocked on the front door of Alice's house and Nikoletta slowly turned, looking in its direction. She gave Alice a warning look and the woman slowly, very carefully walked around the demon to the front door and opened it. Katie grinned at her.

"Alice! You will never believe what I just found for you!" she gushed.

Alice tried to smile, despite her recent events of terror and her best friend caught the attempt and the smile vanished. "Alice? Hey, what's wrong?" she asked, "Didn't you get any sleep last night?" She leaned forward, peering into the house. There were no signs of the demon, but she noticed that all of the closed blinds and laughed. "Geez, it's dark as hell in there! What's going on? Don't tell me you're going through a Marilyn Manson phase or something?"

Alice forced a laugh. "M - Maybe ... !"

Katie didn't laugh; instead, she squinted at Alice and looked a little more concerned this time. "Alice, are you okay?"

"Y - Yeah, I'm fine." Alice replied, shaking her head and acting as if nothing was wrong at all, "I haven't had my coffee yet." Or my crazy pills.

Katie grinned again. "Good! Because I have a surprise for you!"

"Is it a gun?"

Katie missed the dismal jibe and she laughed. "No! I got you a date!"

Alice looked startled now. "A what?"

"A date!" Katie continued, "I walked into him in the music shop-you've been dropping hints lately for your birthday-and he was in the country music section too. I told him about you and what's been going on. You share the same interests and he was hoping to meet you today!"

Alice tittered and her brows formed a thin line. "A pity date?" she muttered, "THAT'S my surprise?"

Across the street, Pinhead was dressed in Barry's skin and he was just getting out of his car when he picked up the conversation between the two women. His brow knotted curiously. Alice had a surprise date? Hm, this would probably interfere with his plans should this man be the source of her happiness. He had to find a flaw in this in order for his plan to take her to the Leviathan to come into full fruition.

"Alice, he's a very nice guy!" Katie insisted, patting her friend on the shoulder, "And he's very eager to meet you son."

"Does Mr. Eager have a name or should I just call him Bob?"

"It's Kevin Carberry."

Alice slightly reacted to the name. She frowned thoughtfully and rubbed her chin. "Carberry? Carberry ... " She shook her head and her voice seemed slightly more edged now. "Why does that name suddenly sound so familiar?"

Katie cringed slightly, waiting for the outburst to come. She flinched and drew her shoulder inward, as if she was preparing herself for getting punched in the shoulder. "You guys went to high school together ... ?"

Alice looked annoyed now and she licked her lips to wet them. "Huh. This wouldn't by any chance be the same Kevin Carberry who used to steal my tuna sandwiches every Friday and throw my books into the sand and rain puddles, is it?"

"Yeah ... "

Alice smiled deviously. So, an old school bully wanted to talk to her, huh? Well, she could only guess it was because of her inheritance. So why shouldn't she go? She could use this as a perfect opportunity to get the revenge that she suddenly felt this Kevin Carberry deserved. When she looked across the street and spotted "Barry" standing there, watching her expectantly, Alice smiled at him deviously and nodded to Katie, making sure that he heard her.

"Actually, I think I might go after all!" she said.

Katie grinned and nodded. "Alright! I'll call him up and say you're on!"

Alice watched as Katie drove away, passing the demon in flesh whose nails raked down the steel of his car with a furious snarl.

O

That evening, Katie dropped Alice off at the front of the Caucus Club Restaurant and she sat outside on a bench, kicking her legs somewhat in a distracted gesture. She sighed and looked around the darkened streets, ignoring the passing people.

"Alice?"

The woman turned and came face to face with a very familiar face. Although much had changed, Kevin Carberry was still the same in face as she remembered. Of course, when in high school, he was chubby, but here, he was slender and muscular in build, his tan hair slightly long and tied into a ponytail. He was wearing slightly ripped jeans and a leather jacket. She raised an amused brow at his startled expression.

"What are you looking at?" she asked.

"Crazy Cotton, I can't believe that's you!" Kevin exclaimed, grinning.

"Well, you're a sight for sore eyes yourself, Cranberry ... "

After reliving old nicknames, Kevin and the woman chuckled uncomfortably to one another. "So ... you wanted to meet up with me again, huh." Alice murmured, "Was it because I ... came into a bit of money or is this one of Cranberry's famous tricks?"

Kevin furrowed his brow as if the idea insulted him more than anything else. "Mo..." He trailed off and laughed slightly, suddenly understanding why she was so suspicious. It was a bit strange to want to speak to her all of a sudden. "Come on, Alice, I've grown up from just playing jokes on you. After I heard that you moved out of the city, I thought maybe we could catch up. You know, just talk about what happened after high school."

Alice squinted at him before she sighed and shrugged. "Alright."

After a moment of talking things over at dinner, Alice had begun to unwind with the reunion of an old class ... companion. Kevin was laughing as he finished up a story with her and Alice actually looked amused the entire time.

" ... and then he threw it all back up ... ?"

Alice grinned. "Yeah...I remember that," she replied, "They had to scrape it off of the walls." She paused and stared at Kevin's expression of utter amusement, reading his gaze and finding no ill - intent there. So why did he want to have this moment with her? "Alright, Kevin, let's be honest with each other. Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why were you suddenly so interested in me?"

Kevin smiled at her sheepishly and sat back in his chair. "Alright, look ... " he said, "I was a dick to you before, and with what happened to your mom and everything, I thought maybe we should start over, you know?" He reached out to her and offered his hand. "Hi. I'm Kevin Carberry."

Alice tried not to laugh at that and extended her hand to his, shaking it, playing along with the game. "Alice Cotton."

"Nice to meet you, Alice," Kevin told her, laughing gently.

The two sat there in cute, awkward silence for a moment before Alice gestured to the door. "Hey, want to grab a movie or something?"

"Sure!" Kevin said, standing up. "I know this real killer flick!"

It was almost midnight when Alice returned home. Kevin walked her to her door and she just laughed, embarrassed. "I ... uh ... I can do this part pretty easily," she told him, pulling out her keys and fumbling with the door locks.

"So ... maybe tomorrow we could ... uh ... " he began.

Alice shrugged her shoulders and she couldn't resist the urge to smile again. This was probably the strangest thing that she had ever done, but tonight, she felt like she had been a normal person. And with a guy who used to make her life hell in high school! Things may have been strange lately, but this was a pleasant change to the mundane task of many people avoiding her. She would look forward to their next meeting. "Sure. Maybe you could look me up."

Kevin nodded. There was no signs of malice, cruelty or even disgust there in his eyes. Alice was quite adept at picking such things out, but she sensed nothing from him. He was a good and honest man, a rarity. And he just happened to find her.

"Goodnight then," Alice told him, walking into her house and closing the door behind her.

As soon as she shut the door, the voice of Pinhead filled the air. "Welcome home."

Alice had been so lost in her not so common pleasure, so lost in her amusement that she had completely forgotten about the cursed Cenobites who still remained here in her home. She spun around and flipped her light on, casting a dim and eerie glow onto the horrible shapes standing there in her living room. There was a dog now as far as she could tell; the Chatter Beast. Their faces were unreadable, but Pinhead's looked somewhat aggravated.

"You ... " Alice whispered, fear returning.

"You are very brave to tease me, girl," Pinhead told her, his voice chilling and threatening, "Tell me, did you enjoy the fool?"

Alice furrowed her brows and shifted where she stood. "That's not your business." She turned and stormed up to the second floor, where Pinhead's voice seemed to echo from every corner of the house and every window. The voices of the other Cenobites seemed to merge with his as well, becoming a trilling, creepy crescendo of madness and whispers.

- "He will never love you, Alice."

- "He will cheat you ... "

- "Don't listen to his lies. Hear us, believe us."

- "He will hurt you, like all the others."

Alice ran for her bedroom and shouted out furiously, hands going for her ears. "STOP IT!" she shrieked, "LEAVE ME ALONE!"

She dove into her bed and slammed her face into the pillows over and over again with a howl of rage and pain to follow. How was she going to get rid of these accursed creatures? Were they right and did she really want them here? No. That was ridiculous. They were demons! How could anyone want demons here, haunting her every shadow ...

After pondering it for a long time, Alice finally found sleep.