The Arc

A fanfiction by [Miss Pirate] AKA Luke-Warm Predator
Disclaimer: I own none of the characters associated with this fanfiction and I do not distribute it for money, only entertainment. All characters belong to Laurell K. Hamilton and Mike Mignola

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I could see almost every star in the sky tonight. It was near full moon and I could feel Richard holding back. Once I’d returned from New Mexico and Edward, I’d talked to Marianne. We agreed that I reopen my borders with the boys. But slowly. So as to get used to it again.
Walking down the dark street, dried blood on my face and chest, something caught my eye in the shadows. Carefully, and hopefully unobtrusively, I drew the Browning 9mm from it’s shoulder holster. With a second glance, I knew that I wasn’t just seeing things. I opened the marks to inherit the boys’ enhanced hearing. I heard the rustling of a heavy coat and then I sensed it. The power rolled off of this creature like it didn’t know the power existed. Maybe it didn’t. I spun around with the Browning pointed out, and faced the... I don’t know the right word. Creature wasn’t it anymore.
He was tall. Very tall. Probably about seven foot, easy. Maybe eight. His skin was a bright, flaming red. It was only slightly darker than a fresh crime scene. He had only half a crown of hair, but it looked natural. It was jet black and tied in a little knot at the back of his head. He wore a large tan trench coat with a black tank top and black leather pants. His right hand was incased in what looked like stone. There were designs carved into it as if it had some purpose. Oh, did I mention the corks? Yeah. Corks. Well, that’s what they looked like. I’m thinking more horns. But they sure didn’t have that appearance. Maybe he’d cut them off.
All I knew was that he actually had his hands up in defense.
“Hey! Lady! Don’t shoot. I didn’t do anything.” His voice was rough and deep. But he looked me over with those yellow eyes of his, and it wasn’t sexual.
“What the hell do you want? Better, who summoned you?” I asked, still point the gun at him. This was one hell of a demon, why wasn’t he scaring me?
“I’m here because of my job. And why does someone always have to summon me when I go out of town, jeez! Can’t a demon just come through a loop hole?” He hung his head as he shook it from side to side like he was disappointed with me. I knew the gesture all too well.
“What the hell are you talking about? Look, I don’t have all night. I’ve got someone to meet and I would like to get to bed before sunrise.” It was the honest truth. Jean-Claude had wanted me to drop by the Circus just to tell him goodnight. Or would that be morning? Sometimes I wondered if I should play a requiem every time he went to bed. Seemed fitting, being a vampire and all.
“If you’re planning on going on a date, looking like that, then you’ve got some serious problems.” He dropped his hands, realizing it was a silly gesture on his part. “Why are you covered in blood?”
“Look. It’s none of your business, but it’s not a date. Just going by to say goodnight to someone. Good morning?” I caught myself voicing my thoughts and stopped before I went any further. “And it’s chicken blood, not that you should care. I look like this about every night.
“Can I trust you enough to put my gun up?” Dumb question. Never ask a demon something like that. Then again, bullets might not kill him anyways, so it was a lost cause. I still had the knife in its spine sheath. I’d gotten much better at drawing it too.
“If I wanted to rush you, I would have by now, don’t you think?” He raised a black eyebrow at me like it was common sense. I hated to admit it, but he had a point.
With a sigh, I dropped my hand, but I didn’t have the decency to put the Browning away. It was my security blanket. No one ever grows out of those old things. Truth was, my arm had started to hurt due to the new cuts on it. I’d started to run our of room on my left arm.
“I don’t know who you are, gal. So don’t think that I’m after you. We happened to be walking down the same street at the same time. Big deal.” He shrugged those massive shoulders, causing the coat to shift. I got a glimpse at a gun almost as big as my head. Oh hell, no.
He must have caught me staring, cause he pulled it out to show me. It looked like an old revolver blown up a couple times. “The Samaritan. I’m not a very good shot, but I use really big bullets. Kills monsters nicely.” He grinned with a sort of pride when he said it, like he didn’t need to be a good shot.... what? Kills monsters?
“What do you mean ‘kills monsters nicely’? You use your brothers and sisters for target practice or something?” I asked, taking a tentative step backwards.
“It’s what I do.” The demons eyes were suddenly downcast as he put “The Samaritan” back in its holster.
“Who are you?” I asked skepticism in my voice.
“Hellboy Brutenholm. You can call me Red.” He extended his left hand out to me and it was like a normal hand. It kind of reminded me of Richard, size and all. Only the flesh was red, instead of pink or black.
I took it carefully. Ever since I got back from my adventures with Edward, I had been to far out of my character. I keep doing things I wouldn’t usually. I could still feel “Hellboy’s” power radiating from his body. He definitely didn’t know it.
“Anita Blake,” I said. “Is that a tail?” I asked with a raised eyebrow as I glimpsed down and spotted something red that looked like a thick whip.
“Yeah,” he said.
“Oh. Well, nice meeting you. In other occasions, I would have shot you, killed you, the works. But sunrise is close and I have to go see someone.” I turned to leave but he didn’t let go of my hand. “Let go of me,” my voice was warning, but not unpleasantly so.
Hellboy’s hand instantly released mine. Smart demon.
“Ms. Blake,” he began. Very smart demon. “What do you do every night that involves chicken blood?” He asked like a detective asks his partner something after he’s got a clue. Trying to solve the mystery. Where was Watson when you needed him?
“I’m an ani... Necromancer. I’m a necromancer. I raise zombies for a living.” I couldn’t call myself an Animator anymore. Though I still worked with Animators Inc., I knew I was more than just that. My Necromancy was my power and I had to accept that. Even if it made me one of the monsters.
“Then you can help me. Maybe.”
“What are you talking about?”
“My ‘boss’,” he even used air-quotes, “sent me and a small team out here because we caught a whiff of something creepy. We came to check it out. Do you know of anything?”
Now I was interested. Unless Dolph wasn’t telling me something, I had no clue. So I shook my head.
“If you’d like, we can talk about it. Over coffee. Cause if you plan to keep me out passed my bedtime, talking creepy, I need coffee.” Why did I just offer that?
“Okay.” He’d agreed too easily. Or was I just suspicious of everyone? Maybe both.
“As I said twice now, I have someone to meet. You should fit in the jeep, but that’s where you’ll stay while I’m...gone.”
He gave a brief nod and off we went. I had parked a block from the cemetery because I didn’t want to risk any ghouls or creatures of the sort trashing my car. Vamps had already trashed my Nova. Hence the Jeep.
He fit surprisingly well.
“This is a bit claustrophobic after the dump truck...” he half murmured to himself.
“What dump truck? And put your seatbelt on.” I said as I clicked my belt into place and started the vehicle.
He glanced at me sideways when I made my seatbelt remark. “No one rides with me without a seatbelt,” I explained.
“Sure, Mommy.” He grumbled and clicked the safety belt into place.
“If you want my help, fine. But this is my home. You play by my rules.” With that, I turned on to the empty freeway on the way to the Circus.
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The car ride there was silent. The demon kept his yellow eyes moving, taking the city of Saint Louis in, his tail twitching the entire time. I parked a yard or two from the back entrance and looked at the sky. Twenty minutes til dawn. I could feel it. I could also feel Jean-Claude fighting to stay up for me. My heart squeezed itself for a second. I turned to the demon.
“Stay put. I’ll be right back. Don’t wander the Circus. Plus, they’re closing.” I got out of the Jeep and left him to stare at the clown sign. What most people never noticed was that, if you looked really close, the clowns that danced at night had little fangs. The Circus of the Damned. Guess who ran it?
I knocked on the door and a familiar face greeted me with a lazy and tired smile. “Hey.” Jason stared at me from the doorway, his blonde hair tousled and he was clad in nothing but a pair of faded and snug Levi’s.
“Jean-Claude still up?” It was a dumb question. I knew he was. Jason knew. Jason knew I knew. Jason knew I knew he knew I knew. It was a never ending circle.
The shapeshifter nodded and disappeared for a few seconds. What came back to greet me made my breath catch slightly.
“If you tell me that you dressed up just to say good night, I’m going to cry,” I said.
“It would be the truth, ma petite,” Jean-Claude said with sad eyes. “I have waited all night, and now, here you are, covered in animal blood, twenty minutes before sun rise.”
“Sorry. Bert called me last minute with an extra job.” I looked up at the vampire in front of me. His softly curling hair draped over his shoulders, those midnight blue eyes staring at me with a tired look.
“You are not telling me something, ma petite. What is it?”
Jean-Claude could easily sense a lie. And I being his human servant and lover didn’t help the matter. “Nothing.” It’s always worth a try.
He drew me into the circle of his arms, the dried blood on my face unpleasant against the cool silk of his white shirt. “You know it is useless to lie,” he said, his voice stern, but his embrace warm. He hugged me like he would never see me again.
“There’s a demon in my car, okay? Name’s Hell Kid or something to that effect. He kills monsters, apparently. Said there’s something brewing here, though I can’t sense it and I’m getting dry blood all over your really, really pretty shirt.” I attempted to pull away, but he only let me far enough to get the distance it took to kiss me. But he didn’t. He stood there and looked me in the eye.
“If it was not so late, and I was not in danger of burning now, I would make you elaborate. You will bring you demon here to me, tonight. Bring Richard. We will all discuss it. And as for my shirt, it can be washed. I have not seen you in two weeks since you returned, ma petite.”
It was then and only then, that I felt his soft lips brush over mine in a sadly chaste kiss. He pulled away with a pout.
“I must go. The sun is soon to rise. Tonight you will return with Richard and this demon, oui?” His voice was a bit demanding, and I didn’t like to be ordered around.
“Yes,” I said reluctantly.
He gave me one last kiss, ending with a nip to my bottom lip, and pulled away.
“Je t’aime, ma cherie,” he said as he closed the door.
“I love you too, Jean-Claude,” I yelled, making my voice heard behind the metal. I heard the scrape of the lock and knew that was my cue to go home and sleep. Of course, with a demon in the passenger seat of my car, I knew that wasn’t going to happen any time soon.
I walked back to the Jeep with a slight drag to my step and a knot in my stomach. I knew, though, that if anything arose, my boys at home would help me deal with it. Let’s just hope that they could deal with a demon as well.
As I got into the car, I said, “You and your team staying someplace?”
“Why? You gonna offer?” he asked slyly.
“Hell no. I was wondering because I live out in the boonies. Maybe we could talk tomorrow?” There was a lilt of hopefulness in my voice and I think he caught it.
He sighed. “Yeah. Sure. Why not. We’re staying in The Arc.”
“Pretty shnazzy. To think you’d want to stay a little bit lower profile.” I clicked in my seat belt and started the car simultaneously.
“When I want to, I’m capable of hiding decently.” Hellboy’s tone was a bit grumpy. Like that of a child who you just told didn’t have the ability to do what he just showed you.
I didn’t feel like taking the freeway. One, it takes less time to go through the District. Two, the freeway gave me too much space. I felt the opposite of my usual claustrophobia tonight. The reason why was beyond me, but I wasn’t about to complain. Just yet.
We drove through the District and my senses went wild. I could feel everything from lust, to fear. The lust and sex in the aura of this section of town stirred the ardeur, bringing it to the surface and I sucked in a breath. I was still getting used to the feeling. Still needing my shapeshifters right there for me in the mornings.
The demon must have sensed something because he became slightly uneasy. “What is this part of town?” he asked as he stared at some of the neon signs. The blue ones made his skin tint purple.
“The District. It’s the vampire territory. It’s where all the vampires have their businesses. Those who have little respect call in the Blood Square, or even the Riverfront. It all just depends on how rude you feel like being.” It was brief, but it was an explanation. “It’s faster to go through here than the freeway.” We drove by the ally Guilty Pleasures was down and I shuddered.
“What? What’s wrong?” Hellboy asked, his voice held and air of worry and preparedness. Like whatever was there, he’d fight.
“N... Nothing. It’s nothing. Just the club is all.” I kept driving and pushed the ardeur down. I knew it was bad to ignore it, but it could just wait until I got home. True enough that Jean-Claude was teaching me to feed from a distance, but tonight I was too tired to put in the effort. When I got home, however, I was going to have to make the effort. I was pretty sure I’d need help until then. Who better to help than one who helps feed it?

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The Arc: 2
The Arc Index