Other Places 2: Road Blocks (25 page)

Since there was no pretense that he wasn't different, Zack just asked for way more food than Judy would think was reasonable for one person, which had a large pot of chili made, with two pans of corn bread and a salad, to round things out. It took about forty minutes for it all to be done, but the pot had added sweet onion and enough spices that the whole place was far more inviting to him than it had been for a while.

That was due to the changes, which he realized was a bit mean of him. On some level he'd kind of felt like the actress was taking over and being pushy, even when all she was really doing was making his world nicer. He had to eat out of regular sized bowls, but was able to put a lot of melted butter on the bread, along with honey. It shouldn't have worked with the spicy food, being too sweet, but he really liked it, once he let himself feel the gnawing hunger again.

"This is really good. Thanks." He had to wait between bites, but she winked at him, and reached out to touch his arm gently. It wasn't a come on though, he didn't think.

Zack, remembering to practice like he'd been told, tried to read her in that brief contact, but didn't get anything. That could mean almost anything, naturally, since he wasn't all that good at doing that kind of thing yet. After eating for a bit he moved and tried it again, touching her arm in a way that would probably seem like he was coming on to her, instead of the other way around. That would be natural enough, since she was a friendly person, as well as cute. It took a lot longer and still nothing came out. It was baffling.

He'd gotten a read on an Alede before, so he knew it could be done.

Still eating he tried to work out what it meant. Was he doing something wrong? His review of it said that he should be fine really. The connection was solid, flesh on flesh, and his focus should be deep enough. The light trickle of magical energy he was using was enough, but he tried to increase it, just in case he was wrong.

That got her to pull back, as if stung.

Then she smiled.

"It seems that we're about done with
this
game then, aren't we? Well, it's been fun." She stood, but didn't run out or anything, even as what had to be happening slowly dawned on him. Mirror Him got it first, but then, in a lot of ways MH was smarter than he was.

'Crap. She's not her. She's-'

Judy looked strange, but tilted her head, her eyes going just a little bit blank.

"That's right, boys,
it's daddy
!" She threw her arms out wide, and spun in a circle, but only one time. Then she cleared her throat, which was strange and obviously meant to get his attention. She still looked and sounded like her however, even as his brain slowly processed everything.

Mirror Him freaked, but didn't attack, just screaming again and hiding. It was a bit less than helpful, or protective, but Zack got the idea. He was the one in charge now and MH knew it.

It took a moment, and Zack kept eating, since he was both still really hungry and wanted the time to think. That last part simply wasn't happening well, so he actually was dishing up a second bowl of chili when he finally let his mouth move.

"You can pay me for the food then. What you've had here." It was what he was supposed to say, he figured, but the actress, who clearly wasn't, just nodded, and sat down, getting that the first move wasn't going to be fighting, or even running off, it seemed.

"Fair." The eyes went back to being a lot more normal, or at least more Judy, but the voice was a bit sing song and eerie. "So, son of my flesh, daughter of my soul, I've come to bring you home with me. After Finias stole you away, I thought to never find you again, but then I heard of a boy that walked the lines, and who wore my old face, all while pretending so very well to be a Human. I didn't believe it at first. I really thought that
Keeley
was my son, you know. I'm
very
happy that it's you. You're...
perfect
." Absently she, or more properly, he, took some of the corn bread and buttered it. The spread had herbs in it but was starting to solidify from its melted state a bit already.

Buying time for thinking, Zack did the same, adding honey to his. He needed to eat. That or it was his last meal, so was worth paying attention to anyway.

"You know, I kept thinking of you as taller. With
horns
too. Maybe red skin? The way the others talked about you made you seem, really insane. Like... me. Still, I guess you're kind of horrible, aren't you? What you did to me and all that? Not a great thing. It might have been better to leave me alone that way. I'm... not well, as you've probably guessed." It took an application of will and magic to keep the fear at bay, but he sounded confident and even slightly tough, though that wasn't going to really help him in the end, was it?

Xenses surprised him then, because while Zack expected laughter, or mocking, what he got was a somber nod.

"I can see that now. At the time I thought I was creating a masterpiece, something so broken that nothing would be able to stop you. A force that our side could use against those that seek to constrain us and hold us down. There's a war going on. One between those that love freedom, and those that think that the apex predators of the world, meaning us, need to be held to Human rules of behavior. Not that they really do that themselves, the bunch of hypocrites. We're
Greater Demons
, son. We have our own rules, and don't really need more. We should seek to shape reality to our liking, not just accept what it is and nudge here and there like those goody-goods. I bet that no one explained that to you at all, did they? It was all just rape and torture, having to eat your mother's legs while she screamed and fucking your human father in the ass with that little penis I helped you grow?" The Judy Demon sighed, and pushed the large pot of chili closer. "Eat up. What Finias allowed to happen to you... Starving you like that for years..."

There was actually anger in her eyes.

"I won't let them hurt you anymore. I'll admit, at least they gave you over to Darla, she's a good girl. You really should fuck her, you know that? If you make your cock big enough she'll scream for days. I used to do that to her, when she was my slave. I was going to do Keeley that way too, but she actually got the better of me. Can you believe that? Luckily she's done it a couple of times now to others, or I'd be a laughing stock. There's a person that needs her ass raped. I'll leave that to you. It can be your birthday present."

"Um... That sounds horrible. Why would I do that? For one thing, I'm pretty certain that either of them would just
let
me do that, if I asked or traded for it, as long as it didn't hurt them, plus, aren't we all related?"

That got Judy to nod, explaining calmly, instead of lashing out.

"Sure, but Zack, we aren't Human and incest doesn't produce monsters for us. It doesn't weaken the line, and we aren't fertile that way. You'd have to get a Human woman pregnant to make it work, and that takes effort on our part. Only the men can do it. I mean, clearly, I'm a male." She gestured to her rather cute body, and grinned. "We can look like anything, or anyone, once we learn how. I can show you, if you want? Or Darla can. I didn't come to make your life harder. I already did that. All the bad things in your life are my doing. Then, I am called The Defiler for a reason. We don't need that between us though, you're special. I could see it the moment I laid eyes on you. I came to let you know that you're
loved
. I know that things were rocky in the past, but someday, I hope that you'll see that we're on the same side."

There was another light hand on his arm and the woman stood up, pacing a bit. Her shoes, which were just sneakers, tapped on the ground lightly. There was only that and the faint ticking of the clock on the wall, across from the stove.

"Can we do that, do you think? Can we move past my mistakes at all?"

Zack nearly tried to lie, but then shook his head.

"Probably not. Not in a happy-go-lucky family way. I doubt that I'm going to invite you over for Christmas or the Fourth of July picnic or any of that. I
suppose
, if you really mean to try, and aren't just playing games with me, I can try too. Slowly. For now..." He didn't know. Really, as scared as he was inside, magical suppression or not, he wanted to know more about what was going on. "Why don't you tell me about what you did to the real Judy?"

That got a pause, and Zack waited to hear that she was dead, buried in a forest somewhere, probably having been tortured first.

Xenses waved a hand.

"I figured out that harming her, and then making myself likable to you wouldn't go over well. She's in Australia, in an isolated cabin with no phone service and should be there for another week. I left her food and told her it was just for her own protection. She doesn't even know that anything is wrong yet. I was even good with her bitchy daughter and didn't put her through the back wall of her secret smut shop. Pretty Plus, because fat chicks need love too. It's a great idea, but the Alede can be catty at times. It's part of why I picked Judy for this. You'll like her when you meet I think. She's actually a lot like how I've been playing her for you. I suppose that you want me to leave and never darken your doorstep again now?"

He shrugged.

"That would probably be the best plan, for me personally, but we're setting up a bargain here, aren't we? I try to be willing to overlook all the horrors you've committed and you keep yourself to good behavior around me? No killing people, or rape, that kind of thing? No slavery either? At least between us or my friends. I have a lot of friends, I won't lie about that."

The blonde actually froze in place, like a Vampire and didn't move for a long time.

"Sorry, are you actually trying to bargain with me over family relationships?"

"Yep. Is that too stupid? I can't say I'll instantly like you, but if you weren't lying to me about all this, we can deal. It won't keep Darla and Keeley from coming for you, I don't think, and I won't get in the way there. They plan to use me for bait, but..."

The truth was, at that time, any of them could simply kill him in a fight. The only thing he could do was try to set things up so he didn't just die. It probably wasn't possible, since Xenses was said to be insane, but Judy nodded, her face lighting up.

"Like I said,
perfect
. You're smart and strong, like I was. More, you can walk the inroads better than anyone, I think. That can take a long time to learn. That whore, your Aunt Keeley, she learned it fast enough, but you did it faster. Space, as they say, is your bitch. I accept your terms. We'll be family and try not to be evil to each other. I won't harm you, or call in harm to you or your people. That doesn't include Finias, Darla or Keeley, or
their
people. I'm not trying to trick you there, some of their minions will be known to you, and I might have to do things to them that you won't like. That doesn't get included, if they're already claimed." There was no hand held out, but the eye contact was sharp and direct. The blue eyes that looked at him were lovely.

Zack nodded once.

"No tricks or anything. A truce, of sorts. I can't remember what you did to me, and made me do, but when I do, we may have to renegotiate. I don't want this to be a lie or anything, but since I don't know, I can't make promises there."

"Agreed, to those terms, then."

"On those terms."

Then, just as the clock struck six, Judy started to move, collecting her things. Her face was remarkably sane, but so, Zack realized, was his, most of the time. He didn't know if Xenses could keep a bargain even, never having heard one way or the other.

"I should fly then. Oh, before I go, tell Troy that I had fun? Next time I want to do him from behind, do you think he'll go for that?"

Zack blinked.

"I have no clue. I'll pass the message along."

"Also... Eat more. I know it seems intense, but both Darla and Keeley are light eaters and you have a lot to make up for. Finias is going to pay for that. He knew what you were and should have seen to your care, instead of just leaving you like he did. Worse, his fingerprints are all over your life. So he
knew
. That won't be forgiven." Then, without waiting, she walked to the back of the house and got into her car, which was a rental that was parked behind the garage.

Feeling baffled and like he was in a situation that he just didn't understand at all, he ate more and kept going, until eight. He finally managed to feel full for a moment and hadn't bothered to clean up everything, but had cooked, to practice that skill too, not just opening jars and cans or plastic wrappers. That happened, but only while he waited for food to finish.

That meant that when Darla showed up, wearing a cheerleader's uniform of all things. She noticed the disarray right off. Zack managed to seem calm, but she made a face.

"Eating good, mess bad." Looking around her eyes went a bit wide, but she didn't comment on how much he'd actually managed to get down, not directly. "Excellent however. We can go shopping again. I thought that I was going to have to fight with you for a while, before you caught on. It was hard to get Keeley up to speed and she
still
under eats."