Alastor had decided to take a walk, recounting the moment repeatedly in his head when Charlie had told them just which archangel was stepping their vile feet on Hell's floor. Honestly, he was wishing he hadn't asked to begin with. At first, both he and AngelDust had stared at Charlie for the longest moment, until they realized she was quite serious.
The Angel of Death...
As far as he knew, the Angel of Death hadn't been reincarnated last or even called forth for any major tasks since the plagues of Egypt so many years ago. It was the only angel without a physical form of its own, and so it took the forms of others and they themselves became the Angel of Death. Charlie said it wasn't the same reincarnation as the angel who passed through, drawing the breath out of every firstborn in Egypt and leaving families wailing in despair. It made him all the more curious who this new face would be.
Not that it truly mattered, he thought... In the end, his goal was to get the archangel to leave as quick as possible. Nothing messy or provoking, just some careful persuasion. He didn't want this person screwing up any of his plans with the hotel and it's foolish residents, or worse, killing him completely. This needed to be done with caution and planning.
Alastor's eyes drifted around to the few demons that hadn't fled upon his presence, searching for any signs that they knew what was coming to visit them.
Nothing... They all seemed blissfully ignorant. Maybe that was a good thing. Exterminators were expected every once in a while, but tell the common demons that an archangel was coming, and there'd be utter chaos. People running around screaming and making a fuss like chickens with their heads cut off.
He slowed his walk to a halt upon arriving at Mimzy's club, and deciding that all this information was coming too quickly for his liking, went in for a drink. One might wonder how alcohol was supposed to help sharpen a person's mind for thinking, and the answer was, it doesn't... but Alastor had a slight advantage in that it took a lot to get him drunk.
The bar was relatively calm, not an excessive amount of chatter to be heard. This was pleasing, as he didn't particularly enjoy talking when he needed to think. He took a whole booth at the back, which effectively reserved it for himself as no person in their right mind who knew who he was would sit by him. There was a clear view to the stage up front, though nobody seemed to be occupying it yet. It wasn't long before Mimzy caught sight of him and weaved her way through the joint towards him.
"Hey, sugar! Haven't seen you in a long time. Anything I can do ya for?" She asked sweetly.
"Good afternoon! And yes, I could do with a glass of Merlot wine if you don't mind." Regardless of being a serial killer and renowned tyrant, he had his charm. And charm inherently came with certain manners, at least for the time period he grew up.
"Coming right up!"
Mimzy was one of the few people that didn't run in utter terror when he entered the vicinity, but it wasn't as though she didn't have the same wary demeanor over his presence. She simply chose to accommodate that in a different way, meaning rather than avoiding him to stay safe, she treated him like royalty to stay on his good side. Not that he minded too much. She was a sweet woman when it came down to it, if not incredibly mischievous. There was a darker side behind that smile, much like Alastor. Perhaps that's why he hadn't attempted to harm her yet. There was too much for him to relate to.
While waiting, there was a rustling of curtains that drew his attention to the front. Out came the bar's usual piano man and behind him... someone else.
A young woman, with h/c hair and a piercing gaze. Immediately, Alastor felt as though he'd seen her before, but for the life of him couldn't recall where. Perhaps he'd seen her passing on the streets?
She wore a long solid color dress, one that framed her body well without being very immodest. There wasn't much jewelry to be seen, not that it really mattered in the grand scheme of things, as her natural appearance was as lovely as it was unique. She grasped the microphone stand on stage, and he watched her eyes dull with some hidden thoughts he couldn't place.
The piano man started up, a slow and meaningful tempo. No one in the club was paying the young woman any attention... until she began to sing.
"Something always brings me back to you
It never takes too long
No matter what I say or do
I'll still feel you here 'till the moment I'm gone
You hold me without touch
You keep me without chains
I never wanted anything so much than to drown in your love
And not feel your reign."
Alastor found himself forgetting about the fact that he was still waiting for a drink, and tilted his head curiously. A dark shadow just behind him looked critically at the woman on stage, as if the sweet sound of her voice was some kind of trick they needed to be wary of.
"Set me free, leave me be
I don't want to fall another moment into your gravity
Here I am, and I stand
So tall, just the way I'm supposed to be
But you're on to me and all over me"
"Oh, you loved me 'cause I'm fragile
When I thought that I was strong
But you touch me for a little while
And all my fragile strength is gone
Set me free, leave me be
I don't want to fall another moment into your gravity
Here I am, and I stand
So tall, just the way I'm supposed to be
But you're on to me and all over me."
He had no idea just how engrossed he'd become watching the woman on stage sing, her voice suddenly becoming powerful. The bar had gone quiet with enraptured demons looking on, some of them deeply effected by the songs words. And the girl on stage, well, she seemed lost in her own world as the lyrics fell off her lips one by one.
"I live here on my knees as I try to make you see
That you're everything I think I need here on the ground!
But you're neither friend nor foe though I can't seem to let you go
The one thing that I still know is that you're keeping me down!"
The last note was drawn out, clear and heartfelt as she looked. Alastor was surprised that such a difficult and powerful note hadn't caused her voice to crack. Her voice began to soften.
"You're keeping me down, eh ooh
You're on to me, on to me, and all over
Something always brings me back to you
It never takes too long..."
There was a stunned silence, as if the depth of the music had been so great that no one realized it was over. Then... a clap. Dozens more arose and the cheers slowly melted into catcalls by suddenly hungry looking males. Alastor didn't give any applause. Only stared with vacant eyes at the now shy female on stage, who seemed a mix of pleased, embarrassed, and... distant. Her eyes suddenly landed on him, and he watched that smile fade.
Sure, he was used to the joy in peoples faces disappearing when they saw him, but he was caught off guard by how intently she was looking at him. As if there was some other concern on her mind than she was staring at the infamous Radio Demon. That frown... it wasn't fearful or worried. No...
Disappointed.
He narrowed his eyes at her, and watched her gaze lower, before she turned and made her exit from the stage, disappearing behind the curtains and leaving a club full of disappointed demons. It was only then that Alastor became aware of a presence at his side. Mimzy had her eyes on the stage as well, but was smiling and hadn't seemed to notice the moment of tension between himself and the stranger.
"Lovely thing, isn't she?"
"You know her?"
"Oh, well... not exactly." The flapper girl admitted. "You see, I saw her wandering and looking a little lost among the streets. She seemed to be searchin' for something. I thought she must be new, and I figured I couldn't let a pretty little thing like that wander till some pervert caught her. So I offered her a job waiting tables. To my surprise, she politely turned it down. That got us talkin' and I learned she could sing. I asked her if I could hear and the moment that lovely voice sounded, I knew I had to have her perform. She agreed to one show, and I'll be damned if she wasn't the bees knees!"
Alastor stared, not used to the flapper letting out such a long speech. Mimzy seemed to take note of her rambling and flushed nervously.
"A-Anyway, here's your drink, honey. Sorry it took so long. We were out so I had to grab a new bottle from the back." She set it on the table for him and swiftly made her leave.
He raised a brow, taking a sip of his drink as he watched her leave. How odd... His gaze was once again redirected however, by the retreating figure of that same woman discretely leaving out the club's back door. A smart decision, given at least half of the club was searching for her. Unfortunately, she had caught the Radio Demon's attention. A rather dangerous thing.
There wasn't much insight as to why he felt the need to speak with her, to examine her. There was just something so familiar. Something that rugged at the back of his mind for some sense of recognition.
He got up, leaving his drink, and followed her.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Author's Note: Thank you for y'alls support! I shouldn't have to say the picture up top isn't mine. That's Viziepop and her teams beautiful work ^^ Here's the link to the song used in this chapter. https://youtu.be/rEXhAMtbaec Hope you enjoyed!