"He'd do it for me. Tell me he wouldn't. If I was missing-"
"He'd burn the whole world down 'till he could dig you out of the ashes, I know".
- The Mortal Instruments: City of Lost Souls by Cassandra Clare.
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Olalla had made it home eventually, only after making a detour to the local tavern for a well-earned whisky. Well, she had survived not just an evening with MIO, but walking back alone in 1930s London at 11 o'clock at night. Maggie had met her with such a sigh of relief when she opened the door; and knowing her she had probably been pacing all evening.
"So..." she had started, when Olalla finally decided to curl up in a chair. "How did it go?"
"Well, your granddaughter's boyfriend is one of the most audacious people I have ever met".
"Tom Sackler?" she asked curiously, tilting her head. "I didn't even know him and Lottie were dating".
"I've dropped her in it, haven't it?"
"No, it's... nice".
"'Nice' is probably one of the most patronising adjectives you could have used".
"No, it is. Good for Lottie to finally find a man after that, um... Oh God, what was his name?"
"No idea".
"Me neither. Oh well, couldn't have been that memorable", she chuckled. "Maybe it's time you found yourself a man".
"Nah, I'm a lone wolf me. Besides..." she lulled, pouring herself a glass of gin. "I've got my eyes on someone that if I told you, you would probably kill me".
"Dance?"
"How-? How did you know?"
"Oh, dear, didn't anyone tell you. Grandmother knows all".
"You... don't mind?" Maggie just laughed.
"I fell in love with Edward Hyde, dear. You make your own choices in life, and I will support you whereever you go, just like I will for Lottie, for Robert and for Ravi".
"I don't know how you dealt with my grandfather, knowing every time he came through the door he was a different person".
"It's called brandy. And you don't think I wonder which one you are when you come in?"
"Thank you. For putting up with me, and I will make a concious effort to be Jekyll", she replied, making Maggie smile. Then she backtracked for a second, and felt for the Jekyll Ring in her pocket. "I- I need to go. Just to test something out". Olalla quickly hopped out of her chair and rushed down the steps to the lab.
"Don't blow anything up!" Maggie called after her.
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"Blow anything up", Olalla scoffed. "Would I ever do that". She tapped down the metal steps, looking over the lab, and noticed no one was in at the moment.
"Weird", she thought. "Ravi's usually in here". It panicked her for a minute, especially when she noticed Garson seemed to be missing too, but she breathed a sigh of relief when she found a note on the table reading:
'Gone to get more supplies. G & R'. Well, as she was alone; she might as well try out this ring. Curiously she took it out of her pocket and rolled it around in her fingers. Was this really an instrument of the Gods? It looked so conventional, so innocent, but maybe that was the façade it held. She placed it on her index finger and immediately the jewel on it glowed green. She had kept her promise - she had been Jekyll for many days now and, though her Hyde side burnt a constant, horrible pain in her, she was going to keep it that way.
Though now, with this ring on her finger, the only person who seemed to benefit from its power was her Hyde. It seemed stronger.
"So now what?" she asked herself, slightly noticing the gemstone turning a pale red colour. "Do I just think?" She turned to look for something that she could test on, and found it in a small vial of red monocane on the side cabinet. Holding her hand out to it, she clenched her fingers into a fist and just thought. Thought of the vial lifting, only a few centimetres off the cabinet. Well, she thought and it did. She gazed on in slight amazement at the sight of the glass levitating before her eyes. Then she looked at the ring; the gemstone was pure scarlet now, and she felt Hyde emerge.
But not just Hyde. She suddenly was overcome, by a craving for... blood?
God, it was like a sickness had taken over her; all her thoughts were broken, and all she had on her mind was the bitter, metallic taste of human blood. Her top jaw itched and she felt her vampiric fangs extending, cutting into her tongue. She needed blood, it was like a deep demon-like hunger inside of her, but the only person in the house was Maggie. Olalla couldn't take her blood, it would, well, it would kill her.
"Help me", she murmured quietly, hoping someone would hear. It must have been bad because, whatever the situation, however lethal the obstacle, she would never ask for help. She dropped to the ground, whimpering silently, and crawled into the darkened corner of the room. "Help me..."
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Maggie had dozed off for a minute, the gin finally having an effect on her after all these years. There was nothing wrong with it. Apart from Ravi and Garson, nobody had planned to come. Well, nobody expected.
Ring!
Maggie groaned. Who the Hell was that? Picking herself out of the chair, she went up to the front door and opened it to Lily. She had changed since Maggie had seen her last; now wearing a twilight blue trench coat, black tulip skirt, brogues and a black beret slightly offset from her head.
"Hello", she said cheerfully. In respect she took off her beret, letting her brunette curls cascade from underneath it. Her hair seemed to had grown since she visited the household last; now it was just below shoulder length.
"Hello", Maggie answered.
"I- I've been meaning to come for a while. Is Robert in?"
"I think you already know the answer to that".
"I... Can I come in please?"
"Of course, make yourself at home", Maggie lilted, inviting her in. Lily immediately sat near the fire, and Maggie sat opposite. "Olalla's downstairs if you want her".
"I kind of wanted to speak to you".
"About?"
"I want to clear things up. About..."
"How you cheated my grandson into giving up information for MIO?" Maggie said calmly, trying to sound friendly, but the words she said let her desired tone down.
"It wasn't like that Ms. Hope. It was never like that. I was given a mission, and do you think my father would ever forgive me if I disobeyed him? If you had such memories of Hyde, and your own daughter sided with him over you, would you forgive her?"
"I would try. It's only a job after all".
"It's not though. I was born into MIO, fighting monsters, I've never known anything outside of it. It's not a job, it's a... lifestyle. And one's that's been chosen for me ever since I was born".
"I understand, dear, but what do you want me to do about it?" Maggie lulled, empathising with her because they both had the lives they lead today chosen for them.
"I just want to know that you think I'm not the bad guy. I did what I did because I had to, and I regret it, because I wanted to get to know Robert better. And not just for MIO. He's... extraordinary. And I want to find him all as much as you, so, for now, can we be on the same side?" Maggie pondered it for a second, doubts running through her head, but she saw sincerity in Lily's eyes, and not forced either. She nodded, making a smile spread across Lily's cheeks. "Thank you", she said quietly.
"You're welcome. Just keep my family safe and I will say no more about your 'lifestyle'".
"I will make it my sworn duty, Ms. Hope. And I will start by saying that we have contacted the sorcerer, Joshua Silverlight, to resurrect Isabella. He will be in the country as soon as he can, and I will keep you updated", Lily lilted, then got up from her chair. "Anyway, I must be getting going. I'll be in touch".
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Olalla was in a mess. Both mentally and physically. She yearned for blood, but she had nobody to feed on. Her arms, especially around her wrists, were covered in puncture wounds where she had tried to drink her own blood, and she sat warily in a pool of blood that had spilt from her wounds. She was as pale as a sheet and her fangs had dug into her gums, meaning all she felt was pain all over her body. Although she couldn't stay here forever, she just didn't feel like moving. Her white blouse was doused in red, and her deep purple trousers had soaked through to her skin. She sighed, putting her head against the cold, stone wall. If she would always be forced to use this ring, and she would always react in this way to its power, then she would have seriously rethink this agreement she had with MIO.
"What sort of science store doesn't stock science equipment?" she heard echo through the lab. Ravi. They'd probably went through the shortcut that Robert used to use to get to the Empire meaning... they'd come out into the lab. Which they did. Ravi looked rather disappointed at his lack of purchases, instead returning with a bag of Liquorice Allsorts.
"Maggie? Olalla?" Garson shouted upstairs, not noticing Olalla cowering in the corner.
"Um..." she started quietly. "Over here". Garson immediately turned his attention to her, his eyes widening in horror. Ravi followed, with a similar face of alarm. "Hi", she lulled, chuckling slightly to herself.
"I-I... What the Hell happened?" Garson asked, trying to help her up. She could smell blood all over him.
"This sounds really strange, but, Ravi, can I..."
"Do you want some of my blood?" Ravi said, finishing her sentence.
"Just syringe me out some. I'm not exactly in the greatest of mindsets". Ravi nodded, shuffling his shirt sleeve up his arm, and he took a syringe off the table. Reluctantly, he stabbed it into his arm and drew out a vial of blood. He passed it over to Olalla, who immediately doused it down her throat, and sighed with relief as she felt her Jekyll side arise again. She ripped off the ring on her finger and threw it across the floor.
"I'm getting rid of that bloody thing", she growled, pointing to the Jekyll Ring that was residing underneath the lab table.
"An appropriate choice of words", Garson commented, then Olalla smiled at how witty the remark was.
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