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[mannik-demou]

luana-roth‌:

Ah, of course his charge would still stay. There was no way out of that one and Aasira found herself nodding her head a bit in agreement. He needed to test her abilities to see if she was going to be one to join their side. It was just another thing that added to how different she was to Mannik. The apology made her stiffen sightly but she buried the emotions that she felt rising. Now wasn’t the time nor the place for them, especially with her own charge in danger. 

“Orders are all well and dandy but you don’t have a right to involve innocents in your little game. He has nothing to do with your charge not being able to perform the way that you want her to. Why would you hurt her before demanding such a thing anyway? There’s so many better ways that you can get people to do things without causing them pain or anguish.” Slowly she shook her head before her eyes dropped slightly. “I…I really thought you were different.” But she was wrong. He was just like the other demons out there, willing to do whatever it took to force people to do their work. 

Mannik opened his mouth to argue with Sira, to tell her that she was wrong, that he was different. But his gaze was pulled in another direction by movement from the corner of his eye. The male, Sira’s charge, had pulled Sawyer to her feet and was trying to drag her away from the cemetery. His gaze met that of his charge, and his sanity left him. Rage engulfed him; a blinding anger that literally made whatever goodness resided within him snap right in half. “I said stay!” He bellowed, his voice ringing out deafeningly across the grounds. 

He dematerialized then, mentally declaring himself done with Sira and the guilt she made him feel. Now, all he cared about was destroying the man standing between him and his charge. Mannik reappeared right in front of the fleeing pair, not being knocked back when they collided with him. In a swift motion, he knelt to pick Zale up, a hand around the other man’s throat. He lifted him off the ground, squeezing hard enough to cut off his air supply. At the same time, he sent wave after wave of pain through Zale’s body, the way he had done to Sawyer but tenfold. If Zale had been a normal human, the pain itself may have been enough to kill him right then and there. 

Mannik barely noticed when Sawyer tried to intervene, as his eyes bore relentlessly into Zale’s, filling his mind and body with excruciating agony. He swatted her away easily, satisfaction overcoming him as he felt the man’s life force start to drain from his body. He was so lost in his moment of pain and destruction that Mannik didn’t notice when the ground began to shake, he didn’t notice the dead or Sawyer’s command. All he could see was Zale.  When he felt something bite down on the shoulder of the arm that was holding Zale in the air, Mannik startled and dropped the man to the ground. He turned and saw the swarm of zombies closing in on him too late. Mannik tried to fight them off, but they overtook him faster than he could handle. Knocked to the ground, he screamed as they tore at him, ripping, biting, tearing his flesh. 

There was a fleeting moment of something in his stomach, regret maybe, but then Mannik was torn apart. this human shell wasted and gone. His soul returned to Hell to be judged, and there was nothing left of him in the human real except the pain he had caused in his final moments.

[mannik-demou]

luana-roth‌: 

He did not just threaten her charge. Aasira slowly looked from Mannik, to the ground, then back again before a heavy sigh left her lips. Great, just bloody great. Could this day get any worse than it was? Well yeah she supposed it could but that wasn’t the point. There was no way she was going to stand for him bringing in her charge for his own’s mess. That was just not going to fly with her. She waited a little longer, trying to see how things would play out. The girl succumbed and said that she’d do it but Owen just wouldn’t let it be. The stubborn dumbass that he was. Aasira knew that this was all a test for the demon, even she had to eventually test Owen. Now just wasn’t the time. 

“Oh bloody hell.” Aasira sighed again when she noticed the tombstone raising from the ground and vanished into thin air. When she reappeared, she stood in front of Mannik and tilted her head slightly to the side. The motion was enough to cause the stone to shatter into tiny pieces that just sprinkled to the ground before it got close enough to her. “Enough.” Aasira’s tone was firm but still gentle as she looked from Owen to Mannik. “Release him. If you so much as harm a single hair on his head, I won’t forgive you. Your charge will wind up in a far worse predicament and you’ll find yourself having to explain to your superiors why you failed them. I doubt you want that, Manny. You need to leave. Now.”

Manny couldn’t really say he was surprised that Sira had shown up. He had watched almost lazily as the gravestone hurtled itself toward him, ready to demolish, but she got their first. He quirked a brow at her but didn’t say anything. After she had spoken, he drew his attention away from her to Sawyer, who was standing near Zale, her head bowed and her body shaking. With a look at Zale’s bond, they dematerialized and he waved a hand for them to leave. “You and your charge can go,” he said to Sira, his voice heavy with regret and unhappiness. “But I am staying here. And so is she.”  He noticed that these words made Sawyer’s shoulders sag, but his attention was more focused on Sira. His beautiful angel, now looking at him like the demon he was. It was only a matter of time, really, before it came to this. It was a shame, really... he could have seen them having a real future. “I apologize,” he told her, his voice lowering so that the mortals would no longer be involved in the conversation, “for involving your charge. It was a matter of circumstance. But Sira, I have my orders. I have to do this.” 

[mannik-demou]

luana-roth‌:

Things had been…interesting the past couple of weeks. Aasira had spent too much time with the demon and was shocked that no one had found out about it. Not yet anyway. There was even a couple of times that she could have claimed it to be a ‘date’, not that she’d give him the satisfaction of hearing it. It was too fun messing with him. Yet as much time as she spent with him, she still spent a great deal of time watching over Owen. Whenever he was with Sawyer, she’d kept her distance and watch him grow his abilities. Every day he grew in his powers, the more she knew it was a good choice to have awakened his abilities. 

It didn’t seem any different tonight but the deeper they went into the cemetery, the more she questioned what was happening. Something was off, even before she heard the scream. She stayed a good distance away from Owen but the moment that he neared Manny and his charge, a curse almost left her lips. She watched them for a moment, her eyes dropping briefly. Why did Owen have to just jump into things? So stupid he was. A silent sigh left her lips before she leaned against the tree she was hiding next to and watched the scene unfold. Naturally she was ready to jump in to protect her charge if needed. Even if it was against Manny.

Manny braced himself for the impact of the other man and used his free arm to fling Owen away. Still, he had been knocked backward enough that his hold on his charge was broken and her screams died away. As Manny rose to his feet, he could hear Sawyer sobbing in the dirt, but his focus for the moment was on Owen. He had shown up sooner than Manny had anticipated, not giving him any time at all to put Sawyer’s abilities to the test. Manny stared at the man that he had knocked away, his jaw set in a firm, irritated line. 

He didn’t want to do this, didn’t want to be a part of any of this. But Manny didn’t have much of a choice. Either he does his job, and hopefully move on, or he refuses and ends up in a pit somewhere in the depths of Hell. His gaze drops back to Sawyer, who had rolled onto her hands and knees, her body folded into a fetal position. “It has to be this way,” He told the pair of them, hoping against hope, but knowing better, that somehow they would understand. 

Using the same technique he had used on Sawyer, Manny restrained Owen, materializing thick black bands of magic around the boy's wrists. Then he returned to kneel beside Sawyer, using his fingertips to raise her chin so that their eyes met. “You’re going to raise this entire cemetery, right here, right now.” 

Her response made Mannik sigh softly and he tilted his head at her. “You can.” There was a sort of sincerity in his words that went against his actions. He did truly believe she could raise the cemetery; he believed she could do even more than that. But he needed to see it. And he knew how to make that happen. He leaned down to whisper in her ear, “Do it, or I’ll kill him.”  She agreed with broken sobs, and Mannik pulled her to her feet, giving her a push towards Owen. He knew he was crossing a line with her... his charge that he had watched grow up. The necromancer with his blood in her veins. All because his duty told him to. Mannik licked his lips somewhat nervously and crossed his arms over his chest. Just get through it, he told himself. Mend it later... 

[mannik-demou]

He had his orders. Duke of Hell or not, all around good guy or not, Mannik had been given his orders and he had to obey them. He had spent so much time tailing the necromancer and then reporting his findings back to the higher-ups, but it was time to take things to the next level. They wanted to know just how powerful she was... if she would fight for them... if she could be broken. And since Mannik’s blood was coursing through the girl, it was his job to find out. 

He materialized behind her in the cemetery after her last client had left for the evening. His eyes were dead, almost as if he were doing his best to compartmentalize the situation, and he raised his head, clubbing her across the face with a rock he had picked up nearby. Mannik knew her friend - Sira’s charge - would be on his way by now. Unfortunately, it was just what Mannik needed. The boy might need to be a pawn in her torture, to see what she’ll do under the stress of Zale getting hurt.  A few minutes later, Mannik had Sawyer in the center of the cemetery, far enough from traffic to not worry about her screams. Her wrists here bound, ankles too for good measure. Kneeling, he slapped her across the face, hard enough to get a gasp of consciousness out of her. Wide green eyes stared at him, confusion and a bit of anger mixed in with the fear that was almost palpable. Her words drew a small sigh from Mannik’s lips, and he looked down for a moment before bringing his attention back to her.  “Let’s not start with the name calling, Elsa. You’re just gonna do what I ask, nice and calm like, or things are going to turn ugly, okay?”  She spit in his face, which had an odd impression on Mannik. Mainly, he was almost instantly pissed off, but he also had to give her some credit for not being a doormat. He stood up and walked away a few feet to clean his face, removing the temptation to kick her or something else childish. When he looked back at her, the look of triumph in her eyes actually made him chuckle.

“Okay... so it seems we’re doing this the hard way. Fine.” He returned to his spot in front of her, bringing up a hand to lightly touch the side of her face. His fingertips pressed against her temple and he sent waves of pain through her body, mentally wishing he could be anywhere else when she started to scream.

[mannik-demou]

luana-roth:

Curious eyes watched the woman they were now tailing but it seemed like nothing was going to happen. The woman was so lost in her book that she didn’t notice much of anything. It was amazing that she could even walk properly without tripping. Her gaze drew slightly back to Mannik when he began to speak again, a soft chuckle escaping her lips. “Skydiving, how adventurous that sounds.” Even if it was a little silly for her; she was an angel and even though she shouldn’t, she could still shift to her angelic form and fly if she so desired. She didn’t though because it was frowned upon unless absolutely necessary. 

“I definitely think dinner and a movie is a bit…overrated, no offense to those that enjoy such things. But I feel like there’s other things that could be more fun. Going to a flea market, an aquarium or zoo, a carnival, oh rock climbing is fun too! Maybe even horse-back riding with a picnic involved somewhere in the middle.” The suggestions sort of just rolled off her tongue as she thought about them. “I don’t really care for what mundanes call the ‘norm’. From what I’ve seen while watching them all the time, it’s the same old date spots involving food and alcohol typically. Kayaking or camping could be fun too.”

“Yeah,” Mannik said thoughtfully, mulling over the suggestions Aasira had offered. Rock climbing did seem like a fun idea, and it was something he had never done on a date before. Not that he actually got around to dating much. If ever. The thought made him glance at Aasira thoughtfully, his eyes bright. “Let’s do all of it. Not at once, of course,” he added with a laugh before she could protest, “pick your favorite and we’ll start there, then work our way through the list.” It may have been an absurd suggestion, but he found himself wanting to spend as much time with the Aasira as he could... before this dream came crashing down around them.  His gaze settled once more on the back of the girl they were following. She stopped walking rather suddenly, causing a stranger to plow right into her. Mannik reached out instictively to touch Aasira at the wrist, his fingertips light against her skin. It was a nonverbal cue for her to wait, his eyes boring into Elsa’s form. She gave the stranger an annoyed look, but the look quickly passed when he hastily apologized and moved around her to continue his walk.

Mannik watched as his charge tucked her book into the crook of her arm, then stepped into the nearest shop. He picked up the pace again to move outside the storefront, looking up at the sign hanging above the door with a slight frown. It was an occult bookshop, and a quick glance through the glass told Mannik that Elsa was the only visitor. They couldn’t enter without drawing attention to themselves. With a small sigh, he turned to look at Aasira, pausing once more to take in her etheral beauty. “We may have to part ways for now, Sira. Duty calls.” He said, rather regretfully. He did want to continue their conversation, but he had work to do. Blowing off his mission would mean that he’d never see the angel again, and he didn’t want to risk that. 

[mannik-demou]

luana-roth:

He really was an odd one. Nothing like any of the demons she’d come across before in her long life. Maybe that was why he was so intriguing to her. Either way, she found her smile growing a bit more when he actually asked her on a date. Her, an angel, and him, a demon. Now that could get them both into severe trouble. “Um.” Aasira managed to get the noise out, though the smile on her face should have said it all. She wanted to say yes. Despite knowing what he was, how much trouble they would be in, the consequences she would be facing. She still wanted to say yes. 

Picking up her iced vanilla macchiato, she thought for the time that he seemed distracted. She even glanced up towards the sky as if something might come raining down on them any moment for this meeting. Nothing happened though. Her gaze drew back to his when he spoke again about tracking, even offering her to go with him. “Wow, you sure know how to show a girl a good time.” The tease was followed by a laugh as she stood up, taking the cup with her since it had been to go. It wasn’t really her style to waste anything even if she didn’t need to drink it. 

“Well, come on big boy. Let’s go see this charge of yours and what they might be up to.” Her brows wiggled playfully while her free hand nudged him slightly. After she took a step away from the table, she paused and turned back to him while snapping her fingers. “Also, this doesn’t count as our date. It’d better be something fun, kay?”

Mannik chuckled, shaking his head in amusement. Aasira really was something else... He paused long enough to take another sip of his sweet tea, then left the glass on the table. With his bag slung over his shoulder, he fell into step beside Aasira and crossed the street, about 20 feet or so behind Elsa. The girl was lost in her book and walking at a leisurely pace, so the demon and the angel were able to follow along casually without being noticed. 

He let his thoughts resettle on the angel beside him, as he immediately began to plan their first date. “Mm.” he mused softly, pressing his lips together between his teeth thoughtfully. “Well, I suppose,” he said as he gave her a sidelong glance, “that would depend on your idea of fun.” Something told him that they had two very different ideas of what that would be, but he knew he would do anything she wanted. “Are we talking dinner and a movie, or like... skydiving?” Mannik quirked his brow at her as they wound their way through the foot traffic on the sidewalk. “Maybe something somewhere in between?” 

[mannik-demou]

luana-roth:

An oddball demon and a weird angel. What an interesting pair they seemed to make. In a way Aasira could see how they could even each other out in certain aspects just by the little bit of time they’d talked. It kept the smile on her face even as they went to the cafe and ordered their drinks. She got a cappuccino for herself, not that the caffeine did anything for her. It wasn’t like she needed to sleep or anything. As she settled down across from Mannik, she crossed one leg over the other and pulled her drink closer to her. 

“What?” Aasira was so happy she hadn’t been sipping her drink, otherwise it would have been wasted and all over the demon’s face. The pet name he used for her was a bit surprising; what was even more surprising was the fact that it seemed so fitting at the same time. Like they were the oldest of friends meeting up for the first time in a long time. If he was giving her a pet name though, she was so giving him one. “Well, Manny.” Aasira paused as she gestured to him, her grin widening a bit more. 

“That depends. Are you asking me to kill time or is this starting to become a date of sorts?” There was a pause as she chuckled before lifting the glass to her lips. She didn’t drink just yet and instead added, “Don’t know if you know this or not but we angels do have empath abilities. If it makes you feel better though, the attraction is mutual.” Not that she should be saying that to her mortal enemy but she figured nothing would come of any of this. As soon as his charge came, they’d part ways and wouldn’t see each other again. Except for maybe on the battlefield and boy would that be awkward. 

“Why can’t it be both?” Mannik asked, his voice casual even though his eyes twinkled flirtatiously. He did know that angels were empathetic, so he wasn’t embarrassed in the least that she knew he was attracted to her. She had said the feeling was mutual, so what was there to hide?

Mannik had ordered a glass of sweet tea, not being much in the mood for coffee. He raised the glass to his lips to take a long pull from the drink, his eyes never leaving Aasira’s. There were so many things he wanted to ask her, to know about her, even though he knew it was severely against the rules. There would be a time, whether it was just around the corner, or a millennia from now, that they would come face to face in battle. They shouldn’t be complicating the situation with talk of dating. 

Still, he found himself lowering the glass to set it down with a soft clink, and he leaned forward in his seat to rest his forearms on the table. “Sira,” he began, enjoying the feel of her nickname on his lips as much as he had enjoyed hearing her own nickname for him, “would you do me the honor of accompanying me on a date?”  As he asked this though, movement caught his peripherals and drew his gaze away from Aasira. He wanted to hear her answer, had been waiting with bated breath for her to agree, but now his attention was focused elsewhere. The necromancer girl had finally emerged from her apartment. He recognized her pale skin that seemed to rarely feel the sun’s rays, and her dark mop of hair pulled back into a messy bun atop her head. She was walking right toward them, not that she would have noticed either of the otherworldly beings since her nose was crammed in a book. 

Elsa Everitt flowed through the crowded sidewalk like a stream moving around stones. She never once bumped into anyone, despite being lost in the imagination of whatever author she was reading. The girl paused for a moment at the street corner across from the cafe, then turned down the street, now moving away from Mannik and Aasira. 

Releasing a small sigh through his nose, Mannik licked his lips, frustration tugging at the corners of his eyes for the first time that day. He looked back at Aasira and smiled apologetically. “Hold that thought, my dear. Seems I have some tracking to do. Want to tag along?” 

[mannik-demou]

luana-roth:

He was thinking it over; like actually thinking about it. Most demons would turn the other cheek or run at a chance given to them by their enemies. Yet here this one was, thinking about whether he’d want to spend more time with her legitimately instead of just thinking about it. She kept telling herself how she shouldn’t be doing this but that part of her was getting smaller by the moment. More so when he stood up and did that silly bow and held out his hand. She couldn’t help the surprised laugh that came out as she looked from his hand back to him. 

“Wow.” It was all she could say for a moment but she found herself reaching up to take his hand without even thinking about it. “You are nothing like any of the others that I’ve come across before. And I mean that literally, by the by.” She said after she stood up, motioning to him with her free hand before she pulled her other away from his. After stuffing her hands into her pockets, she turned to start leading the way to the cafe. “Civil, playful, charming, surprisingly open. The other ones I’ve come across usually just want to lop my head off without getting a single word in. They think you’re an oddball, don’t they?” There was a teasing to her tone as she asked, still smiling to show she didn’t mean any harm by it. 

Mannik laughed, his shoulders shaking with the gesture. “Yeah,” he said through his laughter, not offended in the least. “They really do.” He walked alongside Aasira to the cafe, and after a few minutes, they had their orders placed and were waiting at a table outside. It was one that had a large umbrella over it, shading them from the heat of the sun, which was making it way towards the center of the sky. It would be noon soon, Mannik mused to himself as his gaze drifted back to the apartment building down the street. He knew the necromancer slept most of the day since it seemed her work only took place at night, but he was beginning to wonder if she ever did any grocery shopping or errands of any sort. Surely, she’d come out at some point. 

He looked back at Aasira and smiled, realizing he didn’t mind so much. The company was more pleasant than his novel, and rather beautiful at that. Leaning back in his seat, Mannik admired her quietly for a moment or two, then asked, “So, Sira,” he started, using a shortened version of her name as if it were the most natural thing, “is lurking in the treeline your only hobby? Or do you have some more exciting pastimes?” 

[mannik-demou]

luana-roth:

“Oh really? You wouldn’t get into as much trouble talking to your enemy? Now that’s surprising to hear.” Aasira almost wanted to laugh at that but in a way she felt it was rather accurate. Her Charge was priority over many things at the moment so she shouldn’t have been surprised to hear it was the same for demons. After all, if a war ever did break out then these humans imbued with the demonic and angelic powers would be key to winning the war. That wasn’t something she was going to think about right now though. Her interest was in the demon himself that was sitting next to her and what he was feeling. 

It wasn’t her intention to ever purposefully feel what someone else felt but sometimes her empathic ability just worked on its own. There was an attraction from him but she couldn’t deny it was just one sided. Her first instinct should have been to get rid of him but she didn’t want to. Something had drawn her in and now she couldn’t help the growing grin on her face. The candy that he pulled out and offered to her was eyed for a brief moment before she took one. 

“Thanks.” Aasira held it between her fingers for a moment before eating it, licking her thumb afterwards as she grinned more. Food wasn’t exactly something she needed but she didn’t mind nibbling now and then. It made her seem more human anyway. She glanced over her shoulder for a moment before motioning to the corner of the street just beyond the park entrance. “There’s a cafe that’s right at the intersection. You’ll still be able to have a view of the apartment in case your Charge comes out. Until then, you want to get some coffee?” Why was she asking such a thing? It wasn’t a good idea and it was a sure way to get into trouble, major trouble. That didn’t stop her from wanting to though. What a horrible guardian angel she’d turn out to be if she became that later down the road. 

Mannik watched as Aasira took a piece of candy from the bag, his smile firmly in place. She seemed to have that effect on him. How odd... At the suggestion of heading to the nearby cafe, Mannik regarded her with a tilt of his head. She was offering to spend even more time with him, rather than going on her way. What a very strange and interesting day it was turning out to be. 

He turned to glance at the apartment building, and then looked toward the cafe, gauging the distance between them. Aasira was right, he’d still be able to keep an eye on the main entrance, especially if they sat at one of the outside tables. If the necromancer emerged, which Mannik doubted would be any time soon, he would surely see her and would actually be at a more discrete following distance than he was currently. “Hmm..” He mused with a small hum, then turned his attention back to Aasira once more. 

Mannik stood, and draped his bag over his shoulder, then with a playfully dramatic flair, he bowed and extended his hand to Aasira, a twinkle of mirth in his chocolate brown eyes. “M’lady?” 

[mannik-demou]

luana-roth:

He had a right to be here? That caused Aasira to raise a curious brow once more but she didn’t say anything on it. Honestly if it were up to her, she wouldn’t banish each and every demon they came across. Maybe it was a bit naive of her, especially given how old she really was, but she believed there was more than just the evil demons wanting to take over the world. Just like there were angels that could fall from grace, there had to be demons that could rise above too. Sure she hadn’t come across any yet but that didn’t mean they weren’t out there. Given how this particular one was actually being civil was a sign of it. 

“Oh?” She shifted slightly so she could look him over a bit more. “You’re actually still being honest with me.” The surprise was clear in her tone since she had been expecting a fake name. Just as Luana was her human name she took on, she had expected him to do the same. Wasn’t it bad that he gave his name out to her? If his master found out, then surely there would be consequences. For both of them. “Aasira.” There was a small smile on her face as she gave her real name in return for him providing his. “I was going to give you my human name but…since you were shockingly honest with yours, it’s only fair that I do the same.” 

There was a pause as she lifted her head up slightly so she could look up at the sky. “I have a Charge also, that’s the main reason why I’m here. He’s passed out so I went for a walk to give him some time to rest before watching over him some more.” Why she was telling this to a demon was beyond her. Just saying hi could very well get the both of them into trouble and she was certain he knew it too. “Since we’re even on what we’re doing, care to tell me why you’re entertaining my questions? I would have thought you’d run off by now to keep your master from finding you near the likes of me.”

Mannik was pleasantly surprised when the angel, now known to him as Aasira, returned his honesty with that of her own. He raised his shoulders in a sort of half-shrug and gestured with his chin toward the apartment building. “Can’t really run off and leave my post, can I?” He shifted then, turning so that he could face Aasira fully, pulling a knee up onto the bench and draping on arm across the back of it. “I’d get into a hell of a lot more trouble for leaving her than I would for talking to you.” Probably. Maybe... Mannik cleared his throat and pushed the thought away, deciding to dwell on it later. 

It was rather curious though, that both he and the angel had Charges in the same area. Mannik hadn’t actually heard of anything like this happening before, but maybe it was because both species had a “kill now, talk later” policy regarding each other and so no one lived to tell the tale. As he studied Aasira, he noticed for the first time just how beautiful she was. And how normal she seemed. For an angel of course. He couldn’t imagine killing her; he couldn’t even imagine hurting her. He could sort of imagine asking her out... 

So... a female angel and a male demon both had a mortal Charge they had to wait around for and spy on. It sounded like the beginning of a cheesy supernatural rom-com. This brought an amused smile to Mannik’s lips once more, and he moved to riffle around in his messenger bag, pulling out a bag of candy. Demons didn’t need to eat, and all of them would be appalled to see Mannik doing so, but he couldn’t help his weakness for Caramel Creams. He took one for himself, then held the bag out to Aasira, “Want one?”

[mannik-demou]

luana-roth:

“Working.” Aasira repeated before she leaned back to rest her back against the bench’s back. Her hands moved to rest in her lap and she eyed the demon before her closely. It took a little longer than she would have liked for him to give up more information than just that. The building he motioned to was eyed briefly but for the most part her gaze stayed on him. It wasn’t exactly good news to hear that a demon’s Charge was somewhere in that building. How long had this one kept its claws so to speak inside the human? Did her boss not know about it? There were a lot of questions and not enough answers it seemed. 

“Oh no, we aren’t interrogating each other. That’s not how this works. You’re not supposed to be here and you aren’t supposed to be having Charges.” She should have just went on to banish him instead of trying to get information out of him. Then again, he could easily have done the same yet here he was, indulging her questions. “But you were being honest with me, so that does count for something. I wasn’t creeping. Invisibility isn’t a forte of mine, so hiding’s the best chance I have of not being noticed. It was a spur of the moment decision.” Nothing about her was like most the other angels, she knew it and so too did the angel she served under. That was probably why she was somewhere between the levels of angels and not actually one herself. There wasn’t really a place for her or her curiosity. “You got a name or do I just call you shedim?”

Mannik actually grinned. It started with a slow lick of his lips, the grin spreading across his face as he shook his head, completely amused by this angel’s presumptions. “I have as much right to be here as you,” he said with a small shrug of his shoulders. Inwardly, he had to wonder what was going on. Their perspective bosses hadn’t warned them of each other’s presence. Which meant that the powers that be either had something up their sleeves, or they simply didn’t know. Mannik wasn’t sure which was worse. 

As for the Charges comment, Mannik didn’t bother commenting. This girl wasn’t the first mortal he had been sent to watch and then either train, kill or interrogate, and odds were, she wouldn’t be the last. Mannik hated doing it, honestly, but it came with the territory. And he didn’t become a Duke of Hell by going against orders. Rules were in place for a reason. 

He looked at the angel at his side and knew he was probably breaking one of the most important rules - fraternizing with the enemy. Quietly, he mused over this for a moment, then told himself he hadn’t revealed anything too covert. But his name... giving that away would surely be seen as insubordination. Shedim wasn’t a nickname he particularly liked but really, what else could he go with? He didn’t have a mortal codename. With a small sigh, he gave in and broke another rule, damning the consequences. “Mannik,” he said, quirking a brow at her slightly. “And you are?”

[mannik-demou]

luana-roth:

He didn’t answer her right away. Why was he going to make this so difficult? Of course she already knew the reason, or at least the reason that was instilled in her when she went through her training. A demon didn’t think the same as they did. They enjoyed prolonging the pain of their enemies, messing with the minds of those weaker than themselves, controlling the humans as they saw fit. His tone when he finally did answer made her smirk a little despite how she wanted to be offended. She should have been really since he shouldn’t be prying into her own affairs like it seemed he did. 

“I wasn’t playing her mind, I was guiding her. What would you know of the difference though?” Aasira shrugged her shoulders slightly before her arms dropped to her side and she looked back towards where the lady had once been. “That woman’s man was nothing but scum. She knew it deep in her heart, she just refused to see it. I just guided her along so she could see the truth and move on before she got hurt.” As she turned back to face the demon, she moved slightly so that she could plop herself down on the bench right beside him. One leg crossed over the other as she looked at him again. “Now answer me. What are you doing here? And don’t lie to me, I’ll know if you are.”

Mannik was tempted to argue with the angel. He didn’t see what she had been doing as guiding at all. More like manipulating. He watched her steadily as she took a seat next to him, thinking about the poor woman she’d sent off in a rush. Who knows if the angel spoke the truth about the woman’s husband, but it wasn’t her place to interfere. Or if it was, at the very least, she could have been more gentle about the whole situation. Something about this angel bothered him. Maybe it was that she didn’t seem very... angelic. 

He scooted to the side a bit, picking up his bag and setting it on his lap so that she would have more room, and then he turned his gaze back to the apartment building that stood across the street from them. “I’m working,” he said simply. Why did this angel care about him or his actions anyway? Mannik knew the answer to that without having to verbalize it. Obviously whoever she answered to hadn’t alerted her of his presence, just like his boss hadn’t alerted him of hers. Angels and demons didn’t generally mingle in the same groups and they stayed out of each other’s turfs unless they were looking for trouble. 

Mannik wasn’t. He couldn’t say the same thing about this angel, but she seemed harmless enough, at least for now. Turning to look at her once more, he gestured with a tilt of his head towards the building harboring the necromancer. “I guess you could say my current Charge lives here. I’m keeping an eye on her. And since we’re interrogating each other, why were you hiding in the trees like a creep?” This time, when he smiled at her it was more lighthearted, but there was still confusion and curiosity in his gaze. 

[mannik-demou]

luana-roth:

‘That’s right, you know you want to. Just let go for once, stop holding onto someone that you know for a fact doesn’t care.’ Aasira added when she noticed the way the human straightened, resolve beginning to flow through her. A smile tugged at the angel’s lips but it was replaced almost instantly with a frown. Someone was near and that very someone wasn’t a friendly face either. It didn’t take much concentration at all to sense the demon that was close to her. How could she have not noticed before? Shifting so that she wasn’t in hiding behind the shrubbery anymore, she glanced around her to find the demon. 

It didn’t take long to see the man sitting on the bench not too far from where she was. Was he…reading? Now that was actually fairly shocking to see. No demon she’d come across would actually have the nerve to sit in broad daylight just reading a book as if they belonged. It wasn’t really her place to actually approach him since he wasn’t her business. The Dominion watching over her didn’t tell her anything about a demon being in their vicinity, so it wasn’t her problem. Despite that, she still found herself walking over to him with a curious look on her face. The human she had just been talking to was already on their way to the party she had almost neglected. 

“What are you doing here?” Aasira asked loud enough for the demon to hear her even before she was close enough to talk to him. She should report it right away, tell the higher ups of the demon among the humans. She knew she should but it could wait, at least a little longer. “Acting like you’re actually a mundane, pretending to fit in. What business do you have here?” She added once she was right in front of him, her arms crossing over her chest and a look that was mixed with the stern it was supposed to be but also her growing curiosity. 

Mannik saw from his peripherals that the angel noticed and then began to approach him and he let out a small exhalation through his nose. He just wanted to sit here and read his book while he waited for the necromancer to show her face. It wasn’t a lot to ask, really. The angel called out to him before she was standing in front of him, and he lifted his chin to watch her walk the rest of the way over. She didn’t strike him as the typical ethereal being. She had a fierceness in her eyes, and was no frailty about her. Not that angels were frail, per say, but they always came across that way... delicate, soft, breakable. 

She crossed her arms over her chest as she demanded he explain himself, and Mannik couldn’t help but quirk an eyebrow up at her, amused. Slowly, purposefully, he closed his book and tucked it away in the vintage leather messenger bag laying on the bench next to him. “I suppose I could ask you the same question,” Mannik retorted, once he had put away his book and leaned back against the bench. He didn’t mirror her stance but instead kept his hands relaxed on his lap, nonthreateningly. His voice was calm and quiet, despite the tone of disapproval underlying his words. “Playing in the minds of humans, are we? Seems rather unbecoming of Heaven’s purest.” A sardonic smile tugged at the corners of his mouth as he said this, a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes. 

[mannik-demou]

The girl hadn’t left her apartment since the night before. Mannik could only assume she had the day off and was using it to sleep in like most humans. He was happy he had brought along his favorite book, a gritty fantasy-noir novel about a half-human, half-angel magician who returns from Hell to exact revenge on the people who sent him there. Mannik sat on a bench in the small park across the street from the apartment complex, completely engrossed in the story. It was a pleasant summer morning, and the park was moderately filled with people, not that Mannik paid them any attention. They tended to stay away from him because while he looked like a normal enough man, there was an air about him that resonated with danger. Mannik was used to the lingering stares and broken gazes, so he paid them little to no mind. 

��Margaret.’

That was new. Mannik must have been more relaxed than he realized. It seemed he was accidentally picking up someone’s thoughts. He tried to refocus his attention on James Stark, the main character in his novel, but the thoughts tugged at the corners of his mind. After a moment or two, he realized what he was hearing in his mind wasn’t the inner workings of a human’s brain, but a nagging, ridiculing imposter. One who was giving someone the urge to do something they normally wouldn’t. 

Mannik looked up from his book, scoping out the park around him. His eyes landed on a pretty brunette lurking by the treeline and instantly knew the thoughts were coming from her. An angel... He watched her for a moment or two, then let his gaze shift down and away from her. Licking his bottom lip and bringing his focus back to the book in his hands, he told himself this wasn’t his business. Let the angel do as she wished; he had his orders and they had nothing to do with her. Mannik cleared his throat quietly and stared hard at the words on the page, trying to ignore the angel’s presence and her actions entirely.

How long had it been since Aasira had taken the guise of a human on earth? Too long it felt like but days like today made it well worth the time. She was a bit of an oddball when it came to the kind of angel that she was. Not quite a Virtue but not quite a Power either. In a way it felt like she was a mix of both since she often found herself going after demons. It got her into trouble with a particular Dominion but she was getting rather good at getting out of those scuffles. She knew exactly what needed to be done and today had been no different. 

The past week she had been following a human that showed promise in his actions. By order of her Dominion, she bestowed a bit of her power to the very human earlier so that way if there ever came a time for war, the humans would be able to actually fight back against the demons on their own. It was just a waiting game now to see how he faired with those powers, which left Aasira nothing to do but wait. Waiting was something she wasn’t very good at though. So she took a stroll through the park, making sure to keep to the treeline as best she could to stay off of people’s radars. At least until she saw a young woman sitting off to the side, just between the park and an apartment complex. 

Now Aasira knew she shouldn’t go anywhere near this woman but the urge to mess with her just kept growing. It was one of the many reasons why she had gotten into trouble countless times but she always managed to get out of it with how well she completed her tasks. Just a few minutes wouldn’t hurt. Aasira moved herself behind some of the thicker parts of the trees and shrubs, just barely sticking her head out to see the human. 

‘Margaret.’ She whispered in her mind, a smile peeking onto her head when she saw the woman jump slightly. She always enjoyed seeing people’s reactions when she spoke in their mind. ‘Why don’t you go have a little fun instead of waiting for your husband? He’s probably cheating on you anyway, you know that in your heart. He doesn’t deserve you.’  She could see the woman tearing up by now, shaking with a mix of fear and anger. Aasira could feel the suspicion from here, there wasn’t even a need to look too far into the woman’s heart. ‘Go to the party that Ashley invited you to. Enjoy yourself while you still can.’