Chapter 9: A Home

After hectic hours of shopping, Maaike managed to pull Alyssa out of the store, she was panting with her hands on her knees outside the store. "You're really strong."

Smiling, Alyssa turning to face her, arms full of bags and bouncing on her toes "Thanks! I work out with Illyan…He's a great self-defence coach!" Stopping and tilting her head she asked, "Is there anything else you need to buy? I've still got free time."

Mya shook her head, "I just need directions to a Mobile store." Alyssa started bouncing again but Mya shot her a glare, "Thanks, but I've taken up too much of your time."

Taking the hint, Alyssa pointed her in the direction and waved at her. She waved back and headed to the store, thinking about how she had to return Alyssa's dress soon.

Walking in, she took a quick glance and picked the android closest to her. She headed to the counter and paid for the device and a new SIM card. As soon as the phone was set up, she downloaded a home-retail app, only remembering after that she didn't know the name of the city.

She asked the attendant, and he looked at her brows raised "Well, to most people, this is Florence city, but between you and me it's Ermen de Nacht¹." Nodding in understanding, she filled in Florence city for location, and began to stroll through to find a cheap place to stay.

Noticing her growing frustration, the store attendant leaned over the counter, "If you want a cheap place that's relatively safe, you'd want to stay at them half breeds stores. Y'know, the fae-humans, they're more honest than their relatives."

She nodded in thanks, and left the store, to follow the directions to find his recommendation.

She walked leisurely, unaware of the hostile attention she had drawn to herself. It followed, each step matching hers, making its movement indiscernible from hers.

The sun had cast is setting rays over the place, elongating the shadows on the ground, and just as Mya turned it fell into her growing shadow.

She found nothing behind her and continued walking, she soon got to the restaurant she went to when she first arrived at Florence.

She rang a doorbell that she hadn't seen that morning, the shadows highlighted things around the city she hadn't known before.

She was beginning to get the reason why it was called Ermen de Nacht, everything was exposed as nighttime approached.

As she waited for a response, she suddenly sensed a magnified hostile intent, she leaped back but it only seemed to intensify.

Looking down she realized that her shadow was slowly growing into something ominous, there was a hissing as it began to rise above her, appearing as a formless figure.

Her heart pounded against her chest and just as she turned to run, the door of the restaurant slammed open, and a throwing knife flew right past her.

She turned back, stunned to see a more grotesque looking monster collapsing out of existence. Her shadow returned to normal, and she turned toward the door, surprised to see Alyssa beaming as usual.

"Are you okay? Thank goodness I got to the door on time!" blinking multiple time to confirm if the woman clad in assassin style robes was indeed the same peppy office lady she had met in the daytime, she nodded.

"You're a…hunter?" "Yep! Born and raised! I ended up here cause I wanted to be a fashion designer… my parents are traditional, they disapproved, and I seem to be proving them right. I mean, here I am right?" she gushed, ignorant of Mya's lowkey panicking until her breathing was getting obviously unsteady.

"Oh dear! Oh dear!" she pulled her into her arms rubbing her palm along Mya's back to soothe her.

She whispered words of encouragement and pulling back she caressed her head carefully until Mya was breathing properly, before taking her inside.

As soon as they got in, she was ushered into a seat by a homely looking lady, she had a jovial appearance, and her rosy cheeks only made her feel approachable and motherly.

"Hello sweetie, that shocked you didn't it! Don't bother with Alyssa, she's an airhead..." "Hey! I just got temporarily distracted." She grumbled in response to the harsh description.

The lady brushed off her reply and returned her attention to a dazed Maaike. "Now I'm Sarah, and this is my store…you can stay here for as long as you want, it's safe here. I'll make sure Alyssa tracks down whoever's setting demons loose in Florence."

"No! No…It's dangerous..." Mya was nervous, her mind raced as the first possible culprit came to mind, Madeleine. She didn't say it for fear that speaking her name might summon her.

"Do you know who did this?" Sarah looked at her worriedly, "I think it's a witch. I came here, to Florence from her place." "Oh dear! Did she hurt you? Come on with me, let's get you some dinner and a hot cup of tea, we'll talk after that."

Alyssa paced contemplatively before calling out to Sarah who had ushered Mya to the kitchen, "I'm going to talk to Illyan about this!"

She ran out of the building, hurrying across the street, through a few corners till she got to a rundown looking building. Sighing she pulled out a dagger before carefully sliding the door open, as soon as she got in, an arrow flew toward her, and she leaped out of the way.

"Horace!" the shooter shrugged "Could've done better." She raised a brow at him, "Where's our beloved teacher? She asked looking over her shoulders.

"Right here." Came a voice from right in front of her, she squealed and slid back on guard, "Would you please stop sneaking up on me like that!" he grinned at her.

If Mya were here, she would have recognized him as the Warlock she had met at the city park. "So why are you here? Want some extra training?" she shook her head vigorously.

"No not at all…I saw a Fährtenleser and a shadow demon pair. I banished them, but I have a feeling more are coming." "And?" exasperated at his indifference she stomped her feet childishly "And? There's a witch involved! This is a greater demon, it only answers to those ones or extremely powerful witches."

He frowned at her response, "Don't talk to me like that…especially not here. What were they after?"

She paused, not sure if it was okay to tell him about Mya or not, who knew what the sadistic guy would do if he knew such a cutie was a target for demons.

His eyes flashed red and the air thinned, "This is not the time to be thinking silly things, who's the target…" "Nobody important. They're dead!" The air tensed as he stood there staring her down as she sheepishly looked away, she tried to think about cute things, playing kittens, gorgeous outfits, lovely daggers, pretty golden eyes.

She froze and looked up to meet Illyan's mocking grin, "It's her…ha!" She pouted, she should've known better, she was never good at hiding her thoughts from him.

"Wait, you know Maaike?" "Maaike? Golden eyes…Is she from the Heorte clan?" he mumbled, thinking out loud, "I don't know, she never told me her last name, so she's a werewolf?"

"I'll find out tomorrow, I'm busy now, bring her here tomorrow night I'll deal with the situation then." Alyssa nodded and hurried back to the restaurant before he would decide to torture her with extra training, but he ignored her still trying to figure out something.

Meanwhile, Mya was seated in front of a plate of cornbread and had a cup of mint tea in her hands.

Urged gently by Sarah, she found herself recounting all the activities that surrounded her since she left the clan. Sarah quietly listened, with a comforting hand placed on the small of her back, "Oh honey!" she pulled her into a long hug at the end of her recount.

"No one should ever have to go through what you did…But you know what, one day you'll look back on this, and find yourself stronger than ever."

She smiled softly, "You are such a brave child, I know you're eighteen but many supernaturals, far older than you are, would've lost it by now. Yet here you are, still trusting. It's a good thing to have, some basic trust, not too much but just enough to not have to live in constant fear."

Despite meekly nodding, Mya was feeling her calmness slipping away, she could feel herself overthinking the causes of what had happened to her.

She had gotten into this mess because of her father, 'what if he intentionally ran away so she would pay the price, what if Alyssa was the witch's servant' she shook the thought away quickly, a hunter would never fall under the clutches of a witch, besides she had killed the demons that were more likely to be Madeleine's minions.

She wasn't sure how she was going to sleep at night, she was sent through a portal, yet Madeleine could still find her.

She felt useless, she was sheltered in the clan, as soon as she left, she couldn't survive without others help.

She had involuntarily blocked out the fact that what saved her, and what had seriously hurt Madeleine was her power, it was her and no one else. Only time would tell the consequences of that happening.