Hellena

Actually... Let's cut back to Maya (Maya's POV)

by Hellena

Chapter 47 in After

Your girlfriend in shining armor (or at least, sharply dressed), here to rescue you!

by Hellena

Chapter 46 in After

You try to dart for the door, praying for a reprieve, only... Your dress stops you. _Again_. So it's more like you have to _slowly crawl_ to the door with your stupid half-steps, at least until Maya takes pity on you and opens the door in your stead. And, for _once_ tonight, you...

Maybe... But you'd rather show off to Maya, wouldn't you?

by Hellena

Chapter 45 in After

You stand up, and look at yourself with a more critical eye. Most of what Maya had done was beyond you, but you examine your face with different lighting, and try a couple of different expressions to see _how_ the makeup changes their look. You didn't really want to go through Ma...

I promise it will be worth it. For Maya.

by Hellena

Chapter 44 in After

You half-expect her to start dolling you up then and there, but instead she shoos you off to the showers instead. While, you notice much to your nerves, frowning at your closet. She wasn't expecting you to, like, dress up, right? Because you're pretty sure all of your clothing fi...

Of course it's who you think it is.

by Hellena

Chapter 43 in After

After a couple of heartbeats of panic, you decide you can't just hope whoever it is goes away - and that you can _probably_ hide _most_ of this. Crudely. If given a couple of minutes. Fuck. ...Maybe there would be some divine intervention, in between now and the fifteen seconds...

Of course it's who you think it is. (Maya's POV)

by Hellena

Chapter 43 in After

Apparently, you don't know how to properly date? What does that have to do with anything?

by Hellena

Chapter 42 in After

You never thought that you'd say this, but... This part of things, setting up the diagrams and symbols while ominously chanting, lighting candles and ringing bells... It's actually pretty _fun_. It was just like when you'd first learned to shoot, the process of disassembling and...

...Maybe you can hedge a bit here?

by Hellena

Chapter 41 in After

You weren't happy with the idea, but it looked like there was only one realistic option here - to summon a demon. It was the riskiest option, but it was also the fastest - and it gave you the most control over the situation. If there _was_ a trap in the protections or negotiation...

Take the books.

by Hellena

Chapter 40 in After

You're tempted, for a moment... But it's just too big a commitment. You'd be trading one dubious obligation for another, and you doubt that Ms. Meyers would appreciate you trying to back out. You'd prefer to take Maya's place on the guillotine sure - but the way things are struct...

Yourself, for now.

by Hellena

Chapter 39 in After

But one point sways you above the others, as you give a silent, decisive nod, and head off to the library; reading the books yourself lets _you_ control the risk. Maybe you won't see every trap, but you can limit how deep you go - and so long as you keep things theoretical, the d...

Er, wait. Just how DO demons work?

by Hellena

Chapter 38 in After

Though your newfound determination hits a roadblock almost immediately. Because... That was exactly the problem, wasn't it? _Finding out_ what succubae could do, and protecting Maya from it? If you knew how to do that, none of you would have been in this position to begin with. A...

With Taylor and Ashley in agreement? No, you're definitely becoming murderers.

by Hellena

Chapter 52 in After

Repeating the unpleasant details of their encounter, Taylor soon finishes, and turns her head back towards the ground. "It is only through the timely intercession of your servant that I was able to beg this of you today," Taylor says, "I shudder to imagine what may have happened...

They're untouched by the demon, but...

by Hellena

Chapter 51 in After

_Is anyone hurt?_ You text back, half-panicking, _What happened? What's the situation now? Why Ashley?_ _No injuries, helping Elizabeth,_ The message promptly returns. And then silence. ...You understand, you really do, but not knowing _hurts._ You wonder for a moment if you sh...

Maybe? Maybe not? You suddenly find yourself with bigger crises to manage.

by Hellena

Chapter 50 in After

You had a bit of an issue with the biblical verses at first, as it turns out they weren't using any of the _normal_ texts. You'd figured that they'd probably have used the KJV, the Nova Vulgate, or perhaps the NASB. You know, bibles people might recognize. Nope. After trying out...

Searching for the angels.

by Hellena

Chapter 49 in After

An hour after you'd returned to your room, and fifteen minutes after a cold shower to _finish_ cooling down, you sat back down to your laptop again. Because you did still have homework - just, not the sort that Taylor had mentioned. At least, none that couldn't wait. Instead, yo...

Somehow, you'd never considered needing the walk of shame back from a CLASSROOM...

by Hellena

Chapter 48 in After

With that ominous reminder from Ashley fresh on your mind, you stumble from the classroom, hand wrapped around Taylor's. Ashley had practically flown from the classroom ahead of the rest of you, probably intent on whatever had earned you this momentary reprieve from service; Wyat...

Better to play along for now.

by Hellena

Chapter 47 in After

You hesitate for a moment, wondering if your time might be better spent elsewhere... But hey, you want to see how the other students react to New Taylor. And besides; even if you don't _need_ to go to this class, Ashley would probably notice you if you cut it, and wonder why. The...

Yes and no.

by Hellena

Chapter 46 in After

"I have another date with Elizabeth tonight, by the way," Taylor says, glancing away. "Ooooh," You suddenly get it, "And you're worried about whether you'll look good for tonight?" "Kind of," Taylor shrugs, "I thought we'd catch a band, and have a late dinner at some downscale...

Taylor, sporting a new look!

by Hellena

Chapter 45 in After

You open the door, letting in the outside world for the first time today... And catch yourself blinking with surprise. Because standing in front of you is Taylor... With medium length hair, a nice shirt, a skirt that reached just above her knees, and a bit of light makeup. The Ta...

The same thing it always does - Demons, Classes, and Taylor.

by Hellena

Chapter 44 in After

You wake up after four hours, determined to make headway on your various problems. Fortunately, as it was Saturday, you didn't have much in the way of work to do - you could feel free to dedicate your full day to your fledgling demonology research. You had Comparative Religion in...