The Reaper's Apprentices #1: Awakened (3 page)

“Don’t tell anyone I got you that. I would have bought one for everyone, but I don’t have that much money. For being demons, they sure don’t pay us much.”

“Thanks! I have no idea how I’m going to explain to my parents where I got this though,” she joked, folding up the scarf. “So you’ve got to tell me what London, Milan, and Paris were like. I’ve never been to any of those cities.”

“Oh, it’s no different from other cities. I was doing mostly fashion related work, so I didn’t actually tour anything.” Avani put away some of her clothes. “I did run into some Italian demons in Milan. They told me about demon slayers going in and slaughtering a bunch of demons at a church.” Yuka frowned at that as Avani opened up her drawer. “Yeah, I know. I don’t know why demons would be at a church in the first place, or why anyone would think to kill them there, but that’s what I heard.”

“Did they ever tell you why they were killed?”

“No. I’m guessing they were trashing the church or something? Not that it justifies killing anyone but…” Avani shrugged. “I asked them if they had ever had a close encounter with one. None of them wanted to answer that question.”

And I don’t think I can blame them,
Yuka thought. She had heard stories about demon slayers from other demons too. All she knew was that they were ruthless, determined, and ugly on the inside. She had been told that if a demon slayer was ever to corner her, she would have to rip out his heart. As far as she knew, they were humans without souls or compassion. She noticed that Master Sebastian bristled anytime the words ‘demon slayer’ came up in a conversation.

“They don’t care about what happens to the rest of the world,” he had told her a long time ago. “And you have to stop thinking of them as humans. They are the real monsters on Earth, and they’ll try to get you at any cost. You have to get to them first. It doesn’t matter if they beg for mercy or not. If necessary, rip their throats out. Leave them to die. They will do the same to you if you aren’t quick enough.”

She knew he was protecting her well-being, but the way he phrased the words made her cringe. There was no way she could rip out a human being’s throat if he was begging for mercy. If she did that, then she would truly be a monster. It was bad enough that humans and demons had a small rift between them. Both sides were trying their best to ignore the other, but a few incidents would arise and change everything. These days were getting to be the worst. Demons were now turning to crimes, and hurting people in the process. Despite all the efforts from Reaper’s Apprentices and Grim Reapers, it wasn’t changing the crime wave.

Avani took a look into her closet and shook her head. “Where’s my purple blazer?”

“I think Tessa borrowed it last week. I guess she didn’t put it back.”

“Of course.” Avani sighed, closing the closet. “I know we’re about the same height and size, but I’m losing everything to her now!”

Tessa was two years older than them, but she was still unsure whether she wanted to hang with older or younger demons. For the most part, she spent her days writing and coming up with all kinds of unusual scenarios. It was her dream to be the next Stephen King, but she knew she had a long way to go. Adair, one of the other Reaper’s Apprentices and the one Tessa was closest to, told her not to get her hopes up too high. Even though she was aware of how difficult that career could be, it didn’t keep her from trying to perfect her craft.

“Where’s Kaska?” Avani asked.

“She’s been out for a while. I guess something is going on at college.” Unlike the other three, Kaska was in her first year at college and was still struggling to find herself. “Hopefully her cheerleading tryouts went well. She said her high school experience might help, but she’s not one hundred percent confident.”

Avani felt a twinge of envy over the fact that Kaska was getting to try out for cheerleading. She was experiencing these little things more than other demons did. She didn’t know if it was because the Grim Reapers pitied her, or if they just wanted to get her out of their hair for a while. But Kaska had the privilege of going to parties, as long as she came back by her midnight curfew, and hanging around campus. If she followed the rules, she could go to classes, talk with whoever she pleased, and try out for anything.

“Do you think she’ll be able to handle it? I mean, we’re Reaper’s Apprentices. Technically, we’re not supposed to be hanging around people or doing what they do.”

“If they trust her, she should be fine.”

As if on cue, they heard Kaska yell, “I’m back!” and looked at each other. Yuka nodded when she recognized the tone of her voice. This was not the voice of a girl who had been rejected or sad. If anything, she was going to bring good news, and they were eager to get all the details.

“Let’s go,” Yuka suggested. “Maybe she’ll teach us some cheers.”

Chapter 2

Kaska pushed open the doorway to Tartarus Sanctum, too excited to stay still. She knew the others would be outside today and couldn’t blame them.
It was a beautiful day with the sun in the sky and an ocean breeze coming in. With all the crowds and noise, it was amazing that Tartarus Sanctum could stay as hidden as it was, even though it was surrounded by spells to keep most humans away. Hardly anyone looked at it and those who did look didn’t give a damn. That was good for the whole world. Ever since finding out about her demonic instincts, Kaska was trying to stay away from humans.

Except for today. Today held some good news and she had to share. There were apprentices all over the place, talking and laughing and just enjoying themselves. If one had stepped inside their home, they wouldn’t believe such a place existed in Miami. The flowers that had been planted in spring were in full bloom. If only winter would not fall soon. She wanted to enjoy this for as long as possible. Master Sebastian’s vegetable garden was starting to look nice too. He had planted a lot of tomatoes, peppers, and cucumbers, and they would be ready any day now.

She found Master Fabian where she expected to see him. Unlike everyone else who looked casual, he was dressed elegantly with his dark suit and purple tie, drinking a little bit of wine. At least she was sure it was a little bit. Her master was never a heavy drinker except on special occasion, in which case he did like to put his lips to the bottle or a wine glass. Sniffling around his feet was Oscar, his little Yorkie terrier. Oscar liked to get in all the strangest places. He heard Kaska coming, left his master, and went over to greet her. She gave him a little pat on the head, and he went back to his squeaky toys.

“All right, boy, bring it over here!” Fabian commanded as Oscar searched the pile of toys he had left in the yard. “Dust it off first!”

“Oh, masters, guess what happened?” Kaska bounded into the garden where everyone was waiting for her. She took a good look at the garden and sighed at the sight of it. For a place that had been drenched with rain a few hours ago, it was now bright and cleaned up with the sun shining down on the goldfish pond. If she had her canvas and paints, this would have been a perfect scene to capture in a painting.

Fabian, Adair, and Gideon were now playing with Oscar and trying to keep him from digging up the garden. He had already done it twice, and Sebastian had given up trying stop him. He had asked for an electrical fence around it, yet everyone refused give it to him. Fabian hissed at the very idea of the fence hurting his dog and promised to keep him away. Right now, they were all relaxed so she tried to build it up slowly. “You’re never going to believe it!”

Sebastian cocked his head to the side. “I’m going to take that aliens have not landed on the planet. Or maybe they have and you’re finding out today.”

“It’s not that outrageous, Master Sebastian.”

“Then, what is it?”

“Well, I decided to try out for the college cheerleading squad and the tryouts are this Friday,” she began, which led to silence everywhere. Fabian’s smile disappeared at that news. “Oh, come on! I was co-captain in high school, and I’ve been doing this since junior high! My mother said it would help me get more involved with people, and that’s what you want us to do, right? You want us to get close to people so they don‘t suspect what we‘re up to. What better way than to get involved in cheerleading, where you‘ll be around people all the time.”

“That’s true, but we want you to do something you love, not because you want to get close to people.”

“That’s another thing; I love cheerleading!” She leaped into the air. “Go team!”

“I know that, but I’m sure college cheerleading would be different,” Fabian said. “Are you sure about this, Kaska? College isn’t the same as high school. You’re going to be surrounded by all kinds of people. You’ll be going to classes with different folks every semester. Besides, your demonic side didn’t come out while you were in high school. You were okay then. Now is a different story. It will be harder for you to go to all those games with people everywhere. You might have to take double your pills before you do anything.”

“I know, but I can do it!” Kaska sat down next to him. “Please, master! I love cheerleading so it is something I’m doing that I love. It can’t hurt to try out, can it? And besides, if I don’t make it, we don’t have to worry about other people getting hurt. I won’t be able to hurt them then!”

Fabian sighed and gave her a smile. There was no stopping this girl. He might have been her master, but he couldn’t keep her from getting what she wanted. “I guess trying out wouldn’t hurt. I say go for it. At the very least, I know you’ll do your best.”

She returned the grin. “Good. I’m glad you think that, Master Fabian. Because I already tried out…and I made it!”

He rolled his eyes at that. “How did I know you would do that to me?”

“I’m a little predictable, Master. I’ll admit that.”

He patted her shoulder. “Congratulations on making the team, Kaska. Wish you would have told me sooner that you were trying out.”

“I know I should have, but I figured you’d try to talk me out of it.”

“Clever.” He turned his head to find Avani walking up to them. He glanced at Gideon. “Let me guess! She wants to do some school activity too!”

“I’m modeling, Master Fabian!” Avani exclaimed. “I don’t know what a school even looks like. I left after the seventh grade! I get homeschooled now!”

“You left to walk Paris Fashion Week, Avani,” Gideon said. “And I would be careful about walking all these runway shows if I were you. It’s great that all four fashion capitals are crazy about you. But there are going to be humans there too. So I don’t want to hear about how you attacked some random girls while walking for Dior and Givenchy, okay?”

“I doubt I’ll be able to score Givenchy, Master Gideon…or shall I call you Angel?” She teased him, using his human name. Gideon’s dark eyes widened at that, not having heard it for a long time. “Not to mention that’s not how you say Givenchy. I’ve been teaching you about fashion forever, and you still can’t get it right!”

“I wouldn’t rule anything out…Suzanne!” He shot back playfully. “And forgive me but there are only so many of your test shots that I can look at after a while. You’re a beautiful model, don’t get me wrong, but you have way too many pictures.”

“You like looking at my pictures!”

“So do you apparently,” he teased. “Let me guess, you got a new job?”

“Wow, you are good,” she said. “It looks like I’ve got a few castings including one for Dior. Cross your fingers and toes and hope that I get it!”

“Fingers, I can guarantee. Toes might be a problem.”

At that point, Adair stopped playing with Oscar and let the dog run around with the other animals. “Well, I’m crossing whatever I can for you, Avani. Just don’t let the industry put too much pressure on you. I’ve heard all the horror stories.”

“You can relax, Master Adair. I know what I’m doing, and no one’s going to force me to do any crash diets or plastic surgery,” she promised. “And if they do, I can always find another agency. Girls like me are a dime a dozen. Anyone would want me.”

“Heads up, Master Adair! You better duck!” They heard Tessa yelling from above. Adair looked up just in time to see a pie hit him in the face.  Several demons burst out laughing
, and Oscar ran back into Fabian’s arms. Two cats ran away from the garden, and Avani tried to hide behind Gideon. Kaska and Sebastian could only roll their eyes in response to this. Adair, however, was doing his best not to yell as he tried to wipe the cream off of his face.

“She did
not
just do that.” Yuka sighed, entering the garden. She managed to miss the pie but caught all the action. “I told them not to practice their powers on the roof. Of course, they did the opposite.”

“Sorry, Master Adair!”

Adair grumbled something inaudible before trying to lick the cream from his face. “Banana cream. Great. I hate banana cream.”

“Lighten up, Adair! It’s just pie, not death,” Sebastian said. “Granted, it’s a messy pie, but you can get washed up.”

“I know, I know, it’s just…ugh, my hair!” Adair grumbled. “Was this really necessary? Who decided to let her near a pie?”

They heard a lot of giggling from the roof and saw that Tessa was with several other Reaper’s Apprentices. He frowned at them as they all scattered and tried to get out of his sight. The others were snickering, and he silenced them with a glare in their direction. The cream dripped down his forehead and neck. There were a few cats now coming up to him and licking whatever was falling down. All the meowing and purring was the final straw for him.

“Why? Why, me?!” he demanded. “And why did they use banana cream? Why couldn’t it be chocolate or lemon meringue or something people actually like?!”

“It’s just cream. You’ll live,” Fabian said, putting his wine glass down and letting Oscar run around again. “Also, it’s a very stunning look on you, Aide. The cream might bring out some shine in your hair.”

Adair took some of the cream from his hair and tried to fling it at Fabian. He moved away in horror and the cream hit the tree behind him. “Yeah, I didn’t think you’d like that. You‘d probably die if the cream hit your precious thrift store clothes.”

“Thrift store?! This suit is worth more than five hundred dollars!”

“More than five hundred dollars?! Why the hell are you going out reaping souls in five hundred dollar suits?! And…are you wearing a purple tie?!”

“What’s wrong with purple?”

“What’s right with it should be the question! Come to think of it, your entire wardrobe is weird! You wear faces on your belt and shoes that most people can’t afford to go reaping in!”

“That’s the beauty of it. They don’t suspect that I’ll reap their soul if they see me,” Fabian explained, looking a little miffed by the whole thing. “You ruin my suit, you’re buying me another!”

“I’m not forking over five hundred dollars for your clothes! Take it to a dry cleaner or something!”

“A dry cleaner? You know how much that would cost me?”

“It can’t be more than your five hundred dollar suit!”

“Um, masters?” Kaska inserted, trying to break up their fight.

“Not now, Kaska. I’ve got to hear the reasoning behind a purple tie and a five hundred dollar suit for reaping souls and stealing faces.” Adair smirked.

“Don’t mock my purple tie, Adair. It is my signature.”

“Some signature! What the heck do your victims say when they see you?”

“Not much because I’ve got their face before they can do anything! Want me to demonstrate?” Fabian scowled. Even though he would never do anything to Adair, not unless he wanted to freeze to death, it still was annoying. The two fought like they had when they were younger. It never led to any conclusions, but they got over it. They weren’t enemies, but they hardly saw anything from the other’s point of view.

“Masters, this really isn’t a good time…” Kaska began.  When that didn’t work, she finally raised her voice. “Masters, stop! I need to talk to you!”

“Boys, boys, please stop fighting! She’s absolutely right, we have more important matters! What kind of example are you trying to set?”

It was Grim Reaper Linn, predecessor to Sebastian and Yuka. If they hadn’t known how powerful she was, none of them would have guessed from the way she looked. Her long blond hair was almost the same color as her skin. Her eyes were pale blue and lifeless, like all other Grim Reapers. But she didn’t look threatening, especially now, because she was giving one of her rare smiles. As soon as they saw her, Fabian and Adair stepped away from each other to bow to their superior. The others followed as it was customary to bow before the current Guardians of the Underworld.

“Sorry, Grim Reaper Linn,” Fabian apologized. “You know how I get when I’ve been insulted over my clothes.”

“Yeah, I’m sorry too,” Adair added. “I can’t help but mock him once in a while.”