Tuesday,

March 12, 2012,

4: 00 AM

In the Bed n' Breakfast driveway is a haphazardly parked truck. The vehicle's bed slid along the dirt due to how fast the driver was speeding when he kicked the brakes, the lights scattered around the front yard, and the porch glinted off the dark paint of the bulky truck. Past the porch is the locked door of the house, securely closed with three different locks. Further inside is a large man pacing the length of the living room, passing the fireplace only to turn and pause at the stairs, strained ears searching for noises from the top floor. Impatient and frustrated, he clenches his fist to pop a thumb knuckle. His Aunt sighs heavily from the sofa, sipping a half-finished glass of amber whiskey.

They had hurried back with Valli in tow, Addy curled in the backseat with the unconscious man. She had started all the major healing spells she could manage, but even the effort and pulsing pastel purple shield around the deathly pale complexion of Valli – he hadn't woken. Worrying the already frightened group, both women demanded the man drive faster; when he was already speeding. Kane carried him upstairs to Valli's room and laid him in bed as comfortably as he and Addy could, Sunny assisted the witch with changing Valli from the dirted clothes he wore. Afterward, the light witch kicked them out of the bedroom with a quick thank you before the door slammed shut in their faces.

Addy refuses to allow them inside while she's attempting to wake him. The crack of the door and closed window curtains shine her signature color as the magic pulses, and bounces around the lockdowned room. Sunny had tried to knock, but merely gotten shouted at, "I need complete silence! Please just wait! He is stable now, but I still need to work! He lost a lot of blood and pure energy!"

With no other choice, the pair of Aunt and Nephew impatiently wait downstairs. They've been busying themselves with alcohol and leftover food, pacing the first-floor rooms and even playing a round of pool in the rec room, for two hours now. Kane isn't used to waiting; he is a solo hunter, all injuries are his problem and on the off-chance, he has a partner or Sunny with him, he is hands-on assisting them to heal. If he's with someone he doesn't like, he simply leaves them to deal with their own issues. Sunny is much more calm. She offers distractions to the man, whether by more whiskey, hard rum, or a game of pool with bets involved. These suggestions worked until the glass was finished and the game was won (Sunny won his money), and then the distraction wore off.

"Son, you're drivin' me to a dizzy spell with all this pacing. Sit the fuck down and drink your flat beer." Sunny demands, using her whiskey glass to gesture to his opened, now room-temperature can of beer he forgot about on the coffee table.

Kane snarls at the can, yet snatches it into his palm. Takes a long swallow of the cheap and bitter liquid inside, grunting at the taste. "Shit's cheaper than a motel beer."

"What motels sell beer now?" His aunt questions, eyebrow raises in sudden interest. "I haven't heard of that."

"You don't stay in motels often anymore," Kane states, a shoulder shrugging. Heavily plopping himself on the sectional next to her, the cushions bounce and the woman startles as her whiskey nearly spills over from the sudden force. "There are a few up near New York that sell cigs and beer in the lobbies. Both are cheap as fuck, not even worth the money. Where'd he get this shit from?"

Reaching over the elder Hunter steals the can of beer to waterfall a small taste, hovering it above her plump lips to pour the contents into her mouth. She winces, gagging as she shoves it back to him as he laughs. He gains a punch on his bicep, Sunny coughs as she does. "Shit. Val didn't buy that crap, he has tastebuds and good taste in general. I'm sure that's the leftovers from when his hunters stopped by, gas station beer would make more sense around here."

"He was tellin' me 'bout how he and Addy buy all the good shit from some website, Addy drives to pick it up if they can't get delivery." Kane grins at the pure excitement in Ma's expression as the woman spins to face him. Chuckling, "I don't know what website, but you should check it out. All that good whiskey and hard liquor you like. Imagine that at home."

Sunny slaps the back of his head, a lopsided smile on her lips. "Boy, don't fucking tease me. You know better than that." Nipping at her strong whiskey, she sighs, pleased. Decidedly, "I'mma ask what website."

The man snorts, "Figured."

Footsteps on the stairs interrupt any retort Sunny has. Both pairs of eyes snap towards the stairwell, observing as Addy appears in the doorway. She's smiling through worn-out eyes, the worry and fear lifted off her shoulders, allowing them to sag in relief instead. Her violet hair is tied in a long ponytail, swaying around her hips. The filthy skirt and tank top she had worn on the hunt, now switched for a clean pair of baggy, pink sweatpants and a new baby pink crop top. Unbeknownst to Kane, Sunny's eyes flick over the Witch's outfit appreciatively, and admires how well the woman's curvy figure fills the clothes. The elder hunter covers her satisfied hum with a sip of her alcohol, sparing a glimpse at her nephew to see if she was caught. The other Hunter is too concerned asking about Valli, his upper body leaning onto his knees to pay attention.

Addy collapses onto an ottoman, groaning as her bones whine in protest of the heavy movement. Her head rests on her palms, her body bent and her eyes slip closed with a deep sigh as exhaustion eases into her blood more easily. Words slurred, "Valli is healed. I did my best to help with the blood loss and had to regenerate most of his energy levels with magic. He still has some bruising and a few scars from the needles, but nothing major." She yawns widely, fingers shielding her mouth as she does. Hazel eyes blink slowly, the heavy emotions, adrenaline wearing off, and using so many powerful healing spells and overtaxing her. "He needs rest. I will sleep in his room, just to keep checking on him. You two can go to bed now if you want. Thank you for rescuing him."

"Of course we did, Lovely. You two are family now." Suny firmly declares, smiling softly. "We're glad he's gonna be okay. Why don't you go 'ahead and get settled? We'll take care of turning shit off down here and get our asses to bed."

"Will he remember what he saw?" Kane can't control the urge to ask about the illusion the Djinn made, what Valli might've seen.

Addy nods, while Sunny roughly slaps the back of his head again for the question. "I'm not sure how much. But he should be able to unless his mind blocked it out. I just hope it wasn't anything too traumatizing."

Stood, Sunny rounds the coffee table to help Addy to her feet gently. Strong arms wrapped around the witch's shoulders as the hunter guided her to the stairwell, noticed how worn she was she couldn't hold her eyes open. Reassuring softly, "I'm sure it wasn't scary. Djinn are known for creating the deepest wants." Whispering, she doesn't want to wake the other woman too much from her tired state as she explains. "Kane saw his parents alive, and I've seen my own non-existent children playing with him before. Whatever he saw was probably confusing, but comforting at the same time."

"Oh." Addy sighs, relieved. Her eyes blinked sluggishly against the fatigue deep in her bones. "That's good. I don't want him to suffer."

"He didn't. You healed him before he could even feel anything." Sunny pauses at the stairs, her words soft and caring. She hugs Addy's side before pushing her cautiously onto the first step. "He'll be sore at most. You did a great job, led us right to him, and took action instantly. He's gonna be okay because of you." She guides the witch's hand to the handle to keep the woman balanced going upstairs, demanding. "Now, go on up and lay down. Get some sleep, you're about to fall flat on your face and it's too pretty for that kinda treatment."

The female hunter watched Addy climb the stairs and kept her eyes on the sleepy figure until she disappeared around the corner. Then she turns to glare at Kane, narrows her eyes, and a firm finger waving in his direction. The man just shrugs, chugging the last of his beer. "That was rude and insensitive, asking that. You couldn't wait until he woke up, could you?"

"I'm curious. You asked me the same thing when I was bedridden."

She waves him off dismissively, rolling her eyes at his chuckle. "Whatever. Help me clean up and turn shit off."

###

Same day,

11: 43 AM

The next morning finds the three in Valli's bedroom. Kane leaned against the wall by the door, Addy sat on the man's bed, and Sunny in a cushioned chair next to the bed. Valli is awake, groaning as he tries to stretch his sore arms and back. Addy had brought a breakfast tray, a simple bowl of homemade porridge, and honey toast – something gentle on his queasy stomach. They'd been in the room for thirty minutes and ate breakfast together (as demanded by Sunny and agreed upon by Addy – Kane had no choice, not that he'd refused to join them), the three had the same as Valli as none of them can cook or be trusted in the kitchen alone.

Valli has the color back to his flesh, cheeks flushed, and lips a soft pink. The first thing he had done upon waking up, was touch his eyes and trace the scars there. From his temple to the corner of his eye, his fingers found the scars that stole his sight, and heavily sighed. The voices in the room told him he was back home. Kane had sounded normal when he gave a grunted welcome back to the land of the living. Sunny and Addy were present, a major difference from when he woke in the dream. He hasn't mentioned the illusion yet, instead waiting for someone to ask rather than revealing it himself.

As is in character, Kane is the one to ask, yet again. Rather bluntly, from the door of the room. "So what'd you see?"

"Kane." His Aunt hisses, Sunny gives him a warning glare.

Valli giggles, comforted by the borderline rude character of Kane in place of the slightly overly sweet one. "It was weird." He starts, hands raised to feel the scars again. "Like, I woke up just like this, but you guys weren't here and I could fucking see! Like colors and my room! It was amazing at first. I thought I lost my mind."

He goes to tell them what happened, leaving the parts of Kane being his boyfriend to himself. Instead, he simply said Kane was vastly different, an emotional and affectionate version that hadn't spoken his mind — who thought through his words before speaking. Explained that there was no hunting, so the man was a mechanic. At this, Kane grunts and insults the Djinn for making his alternative version a fucking pussy. Valli recalls the implication of his parents and Kane's parents being alive. As well as Addy and Sunny living together in the witches' house. The women chuckle at this, Addy commenting disbelievingly, "A hunter living in my house? Oh lord, I feel for that woman. I'm sure even alternate me was a handful."

"I didn't get to see you or Ma. Or my parents. That Kane said something about them visiting, having to fly. I'm not sure, it was overwhelming." Valli grins, hand spreading out on the duvet as if to reintroduce himself to his bed. "I'm happy to be home. This feels much more natural, even without my eyesight."

The group hears about all the changes, the same features of the house and the market. He makes sure to bring the idea of a tent to their attention, gaining a laugh from Sunny. "We'll get Kane right on it once you're feeling a bit better to walk around."

"Ay. Don't I have any say in shit?" Kane grumbles, arms crossed over his thick chest and a scowl on his face. He won't complain about the work once he starts, but he acts annoyed for the fun of it.

Ma smirks, peeking over her shoulder at her nephew. "Nope."

Valli describes the color he saw, the sky and the dirt, everything he can remember about having his sight returned. He talks about the cows and goats, and how everything felt off yet normal. Detailing how Kane's eyes changed from a colorless shade to the prettiest blue, only because he remembered what Sunny told him.

"Huh. I never heard of that before." Sunny admits, "But it makes sense. You wouldn't have known because you hadn't seen his eyes, the Djinn must've been keeping an eye on you to avoid you figuring it out so soon. Had to save face."

Valli agrees, nodding as he nips at his toast. "Oh yeah, I saw him. I felt his presence a few times, that feeling of danger, but couldn't spot him. He was on the porch when I figured it out."

Most importantly, the group hears about the Goddess. "I'm not sure what her name was, but she must've been a Goddess from how she spoke. She implied what we already knew was true, said the demon was stupid and the angel was telling the truth. Apparently, we are thanked for killing both of them as the Gods didn't like them." He shrugs at the stunned silence he receives. "She was very unhelpful. Wouldn't say why she was there, only that she was curious why I was chosen. Said she'd come back another time. I was frustrated and planning to attack the Djinn somehow so I was in a hurry. Then I heard Kane screaming, as in Real Kane and suddenly she disappeared just like Kane and the house, and my vision tunneled. I must've passed out afterward."

"Can't you do anything normally?" Kane grouses, "I mean, you get silent-kidnaped only to spend the dream playing house with some pussy version of me then meet a fucking Goddess. That is not normal."

The blind man throws his hands up, head shaking softly as he agrees. "Hey man, I didn't ask for her to jumpscare me like she did. I was as shocked as you are. I kinda wish it was just a weird nightmare, at least then it would make sense."

"Great. Now we should look out for God's appearances. Like this shit wasn't stressful enough." Sunny's rough hands rub over her face, sighing deeply and groaning softly.

Addy pats Valli's hand, kissing his hair. "I'll check the wards again. Add some more magic against warlocks and new ones for Djinns. We'll see if any spell I can find will work on Gods or Goddess."

"Oh." Valli turns his head to his Aunt. "She said the Goddess likes to rely on their daughters, Witches, to do their dirty work. She said you were one of her best."

"Oh? Well, I'm honored." The witch hums, "More chance to kill her then, if she lays a hand on you."

"We'll definitely help you there," Sunny adds, smirking when Kane grunts his agreement.

"I hate those smug fucking bastards. It'd be hella fun to kill one."

Valli laughs, touched by his family threatening the Gods. "Thanks, guys. But maybe we should focus on me fighting with a giant hybrid first?"