Odyssey, Part 7 (Aric/Meph)

[vincentbelmont]

When Aric mentioned finding the demon responsible, Vincent was struck by that same feeling of discomfort that he'd had earlier.

There was just something about that young woman... He had come, in recent months, to start relying on his dreams more than he ever had before. The priest knew that he'd had prophetic dreams and visions before, and now that he knew about the supernatural world, he understood that this power of foresight was indeed something special. A gift from God, perhaps...

Keeping all of that in mind, Vincent couldn't help but feel uncomfortable whenever he thought of the waitress. There was something about her that, in his mind, was sending up warning flags. Something that had to do with all of this chaos around town. Either she was a demon herself, or she was connected to them some how. Maybe his earlier assumption was correct, and she was indeed the demon Mephistopheles, who had come to him and taunted him months earlier. That would certainly explain a lot, but if so, why was she not simply tormenting him now?

Why play this act of being a local waitress?

"I think, perhaps, we should simply have our meal and speak more of this somewhere else," Vincent said softly, his eyes lingering on the door to the kitchen. "Some things are better spoken in private, Aric. Especially things like this." Changing the subject, the priest said, "So, tell me a little bit about yourself. Are you from around here, or just passing through?"

[mephistopheles]

It had been taking time, but the demon's plan was near completion. All the better these two had arrived as they'd get to see it all happen. As she took to the other tables and was soon called to recover the food the two had requested, the demon gathered up the plates with a flawless grace and ease and carried them over to their respective table.

Gently placing them down for them, giving Aric a smile as she put his before him and smirking over at Vincent as well, the brunette stood back and looked them over. "Enjoy your meals, I hope they're great. So, will there be anything else for now?"

[vincentbelmont]

Vincent fidgeted uncomfortably as the waitress approached once again.

Shaking his head when she asked if they needed anything else, the priest felt instantly relieved when she turned and went about her business. He still couldn't put his finger on what it was, but there was something about her that put him immediately on edge. Somewhere in the back of his mind, something was nagging at him, telling him he was in danger, but he just couldn't grasp what it was. A fragment of an old dream or memory, perhaps, but nothing he could fully comprehend.

Not yet...

Turning his attention to the food, and to Aric, Vincent tried to put his foreboding feelings aside, at least for a time. Keeping their voices low, the two men discussed the possible situation in town, and what could be done to counter it. For the most part, though, both of them were coming up with nothing, though they did agree that the first step needed to be finding the demon. Once they'd finished eating, Vincent and the hunter exchanged numbers, each promising to call the other if they came across anything that might shed some light on the strange occurrences in the area.

With that out of the way, Vincent gathered his things, left money for the meal and a tip, and walked briskly out to his car. He still had to find a hotel, as cheap as possible, and now seemed like as good a time as any.

***

The room wasn't much, but it would do.

The priest lay on the room's only bed, a fairly pathetic, lumpy, miserable thing, various books and papers laid out around him. For the past few hours, he'd been poring through everything he'd collected these past several months, trying to piece together any pattern to what might be happening here. He was no hunter, of course, but he knew how to defend himself now, and if the people here needed help, he'd do what he could for them. He was afraid, of course, but he tried to be brave despite everything that he'd discovered from his research.

If there was a demon here--and that seemed likely--then it was a particularly powerful one...

Almost against his will, Vincent's eyes drooped closed as exhaustion overwhelmed him. He'd continue his studies tomorrow, hopefully with a much clearer head.