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I saw things a little different.

My first two weeks here were like clockwork, I might as well have been Seraphina’s shadow. She didn’t trust the Demons and refused to leave me alone with them.

Every morning Seraphina would wake up at 5 am, so I’d have to wake up too. We’d shower together before the Demons woke up. She even made me share the same shower stall with her, afraid I’d get snatched.

Even though we would face away from each other in the small stall, sometimes I’d turn and see her leaning with her hands against the shower wall with her head down, almost as if she was praying for something while the water ran down her back. Which was silly because I knew she hadn't been religious in years. I could see her SGI tattoos on her back , somedays I wish they would just wash away along with that awful burn mark that young daemon had branded her with.

I’d then change into whatever outfit I could cobble together from the clothes Isobel Charter had given me . Seraphina usually wore the same thing, a black shirt and loose gray cargo pants. Her short hair was wet and slicked back. She wouldn’t bother with make up anymore and would watch while I did the best I could with lip gloss, color pencil and a cheap dusty eye shadow packet I’d purchased when Isobel Charter took us to a nearby drugstore. I had to remind myself over and over not to cry.

Afterwards I would follow behind Sera as we navigated the halls. I kept my head down, I didn’t want to see how these strange men looked at me. If they did at all.

Every morning at the same time we would walk past Paris Prince heading in the opposite direction.  He would say 'Good morning'; and I’d say 'hi' back but Seraphina would ignore him. One day I looked back and noticed Mr. Prince would always turn so he was walking backwards for a few seconds, as if  to watch us--no just her for a few more seconds.

I tried to tell Seraphina one night that it didn’t make sense. As I started to learn the old church I realized there was no reason for The Prince to be walking in that direction every morning. I think he just did it so he could see her. It was something I was sure Caden would have done.

One morning Mr. Prince gets to close an collides with Seraphina, she silently pushed him off a little to hard. I turned to see he had stumbled into Isobel, almost knocking her down.  He tries to steady Isobel and Isobel makes a joke and they are talking and laughing. If only I’d known running into a boy was enough to break the ice.

“Seraphina”, I said because for some reason I thought she should see this. I think she wanted that. Them together. Laughing.

I can’t tell through her shades but I think she catches Isobel and Mr. Prince  talking.He has his hand on his forehead and the other in his pocket. He looks nervous. Isobel smiles and the two of them look. . . hopeful.  Seraphina gave a small smile of approval and kept walking

Isobel Charter had introduced herself to me on our second day here, but I'd kept my distance out of a strange loyalty Seraphina.  So, I wasn't sure what to think when I see her standing in the doorway of the horrible tenement Seraphina and I were staying in. Isobel is dressed in a pair of comfortable looking jeans and a shirt that says c'est la vie on it. Jeans. Hmmm,  I'd never worn jeans before. Isobel seemed short to me, I was always the shortest of all my sisters. Seraphina was of course the tallest and I was only 5"6.

“So. . .we need to change your look. “, she says leaning against the doorway, "Someone might recognize you and-"

“Oh, no”, I stood up thinking of Seraphina's hair. " Please don't cut it. I like my hair." I twirled the end around my hands.

“We have to. No one can recognize you and your hair is so long it might stick out. We can make it any color you want. You'll be beautiful I promise."

"I--"

I stopped and I had a thought.

"Any color ?"

"If they sell it at Duane Reade"

"I think-- I mean. . .let's do it."

The next morning I stared into the floor length mirror jammed into a corner and tried to recognize the girl in it. My waist length hair was cut to my shoulders. It was dyed a bright auburn with a strange orangeish purple undertones. It looked so much better on the box, but even more so it looked nothing like Caden's curly red hair. I hated it.

I touched my hair and I felt like I was a different person. Like I could never be the girl with the cornsilk hair again. The Prince had been rather clear though, I could never go back. If I did go back to Queen Anne's I could be another Hippolyta. No one would ever guess that I’d run off or gone on some adventure. They'd all just know I was dead. 

I looked back at the empty cot across from me wondering where Seraphina had gone. She wasn’t there last night when Isobel finished dying my hair. She and Isobel had been avoiding each other since they came back from a rich human's wedding yesterday. I'd thought Isobel looked like a princess when she left.

Sera also wasn't there this morning which was odd because she was always there. My stomach growls and I try to ignore it. I pushed against door of the room and peered out. I could already smell a passable breakfast cooking in their basement dining hall. I'd never walked around St.Lilth's without Sera, but I let my stomach get the better of my nerves and took slow careful steps down the hall and to the basement steps.

The walls of the church were high with columns and stain glass windows, linoleum walls wand original stone floors. Dramatic yellowed chandeliers provided the light. The entire bottom floor was empty, it was so unpersonalized. Temporary.  I'd always taken Queen Anne's manicured courtyards and buildings for granted

When I entered the basement dining hall I could already hear the mumble of conversation, the rich tones of so many male voices made me nervous. I kept my eyes down trying to act like I belonged as I entered.

The Demon with the shaved head and fierce eyes glared at me from the kitchen,  his name was Callum. I remembered because it sounded like Caden.  I looked away from him. The dimly light room seemed archaic compared to the pristine dining hall and white table clothes of Queen Anne’s.

“Ariel”

I jumped when I heard my name and tuned to see the The Prince. Although. . . he didn't seem so princely with a fresh layer of stubble and wrinkled black shirt. He looked very rugged. He was actually handsome, if you ignored the web of ugly  scars coming from his thin lips. I wondered if they hurt. Oh, no. I was staring. . . but they were so ugly it seemed like his whole face could split.

“I'm sorry”, I stuttered, “I shouldn't be out alone. . .I was hungry and Seraphina is. ..  I just. . I'll go back to. .  I”

“It’s okay Ariel we can’t expect you to be with Seraphina all the time. Here”, he handed me an untouched tray of oatmeal and oranges, “I haven't been hungry lately.”

"Because of Seraphina ?", I said

"Why ? Where is she ? What did she do now ?"

"Um", I realize he doesn't know she's gone so I lie for her,  "She's sleeping."

"Oh. . . good. It's just it's hard you know--"

"You love her don't you."

"I . . .um. . .I mean to say I've been troubled by other things."

"Is it because Helios shot at you ?", I asked hoping to show him I wasn't ignorant to everything.

"How do you know about that ?"

"Isobel told me.", I said, "When she did my hair."

"Oh", he looked at my hair for a second and back into my eyes, "I mean it's other things"

"Like what ?"

"Momentum"

"Momentum ?"

"Well, the lack of. None of this is really for you to worry about. Enjoy your breakfast."

He smiled a little causing the skin around his second smile to wrinkle, it made his smile look fuller.

“Thank you”

He turned around and left, I shuffled over to an empty table. These boy--men I guess where just so different from what I knew. I picked up snatches of conversations that made me blush.

I’d picked up my orange when someone slammed a tray down on the table , followed by a few others. I looked up to catch the seemingly ordinary human eyes of the daemons. I only found out that Caden wasn't human during our last day together. I'd later learned that he had been a human but a mixture of Ancient Snowfire Apples and Demon blood had turned him into a type of vampire . A daemon. From what I understood they thrived off the blood of Demons. The thought made me shiver.

I thought they'd all been killed last year but a few had surrendered and agreed to be used as test subjects. Sera said they were hoping to find a cure for them. I hope they did. I didn't want to think of Isobel as one of these.  . . creatures.

One of these daemons I recognized instantly. He was the one that had branded Seraphina but that wasn't all he had done. His hair is shaved and his eyes are dark and angry. He was the one Hippolyta and I met at the diner. The one who had lured us into the trap. His eye meet mine and there is only one reason I don’t get up and leave. One reason.

It was because of what this boy said moments before he kidnapped Hippolyta.

“I can’t believe Caden was so hung up on you.”’.

“Well, who invited you ?”, a girl says before I can even question the boy.

The girl was gorgeous with long dark hair and unbelievable pale skin. Her lips were a dark red like blood but I knew it was lipstick. Or at least I hoped it was.

“I”m sorry”, I said to the boy, “ I just. . . do you remember me ?”

The boy narrows his eyes and shrugs his shoulders, so I continue.

“You lured me and Hippolyta into the woods. You kidnapped her and. . .she's dead now. Helios killed her because she was captured . . . but you said. . . you"

My hands were shaking and my voice was very faint. I hadn't been able to put myself out of my misery with a drink for so so long.

“You said you knew Caden Kellers.”, I finished

He shrugs his shoulders and turns his attention to his food.

“You said”, I continued, “ And I quote, I can’t believe Caden was so hung up on you. What did that mean ? Did he talk about me did he--”

The boy gets up and leaves. The other 4  daemons don’t seem at all phased. I start to follow him but the girl puts a hand on my shoulder.

“Are you afraid of Dante ?”, she asked in a odd baby voice, "You sounded so scared and your eyes are all wet."

Dante ? That cannot be his real name.

“Did he know Caden Kellers ?”

“Did he ?”, she says like I made a joke. Then she gets serious, “Yeah, we all did. Dante and Caden were close. Even before. . . all this freakishness. I'm Jade by the way”

"I'm Ariel"

"We know."

I looked up at the daemons around me. Apart from the pretty one another was another small dark haired girl and two others boys who seemed very indistinguishable to me. I also noticed they were dressed the same in white collar shirts and plum colored pants.

“They were friends before? Caden and Dante ?”

“Caden never mentioned his best friend to you ?”

I shook my head. Our time together had been short, just shy of two months. He’d never bought it up.

“There wasn’t time.”, I spun the orange in my hand.

“Dante and Caden were recruited by Isaiah together. Isaiah was recruiting teen tweakers , Dante and Caden met in teen rehab where they both basically flunked. They went with Isaiah together. Dante was this wasted kid from the Newark and Caden was this rich kid from Jersey who got high for kicks. Fucking hilarious right ? “

“Oh" I said. I knew Caden came from money. I knew he had been in rehab, “How were you um. . . recruited ?"

“Maybe some other time.”, she says and the others stand too, "We have to go."

“Oh, was it something I said ? I’m so sorry.”

“No”, she stares at me, “DRA is super strict. Starts at 7:30. Scarface is making us go to Down River Academy until they can find us a cure.”

“Who  is Scar - - -oh.”, I hold in a laugh. I should not be laughing now, "Wait. . .DRA is Caden's old school right ?"

“Uhh. . . yeah. I guess he did go there before he died."

I watch Jade and the others leave, noticing now that a few of them are carrying the DRA plum jackets, Caden always complained about the jackets. He always said they were purple and he hated purple. He also said purple was gay, but I ignored that.

I looked backed down at my tray feeling farther from home but closer to Caden. I picked up the orange with an idea forming in the back of my head. The table shifts as someone sits down, I jump when I see Seraphina next to me.

"Where have you been ?", I asked noting the blood under her nails, "I had to cover for you."

 

Her hair is wet and her skin is damp. She smells like she took a shower with a water hose. She takes out her knife and cuts my orange in half. She hesitates and I look down to see there is a smear of fresh red blood on the orange that had come off her knife. Her eyes shift to see if anyone noticed.

"Seraphina what's--"

"That's two"

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A/N

Yes, Ariel has an internalized crush on Paris.