#Alia Underwood & Justin Moreaux

[thevoyageurmoteplass-edits]

Random Dialogue Prompts for Magical Entrepreneur Story

Gif One- Carolyn: What do you want me to say, Zeph? That it's fine.

Gif Two- Alia: It's gonne be all night. / Marty: OK.

Gif Three- Justin: How could you?

Gif Four- Madame L: What have you two done?

Gif Five- Alia: This is insane.

Gif Six- Marty: You're blind to it, Alia. / Alia: I thought you knew me better.

Gif Seven- Marty: I should wrap these. / Carolyn: Oh my god, Bath. / Marty: See ya.

A/N: I'll probably write drabbles for these at some point.

[thevoyageurmoteplass-writing]

Justin couldn’t take his eyes off Alia. Despite her small stature she usually seemed to command attention; she drew the eye with sarcasm and looks of mild irritation even without meaning to. She’d never looked so small, so uncertain of things, since he’d met her all those months ago. He knew her lack of bravado had everything to do with Freddy having been taken, nothing to do with the threats made towards her despite how it was those threats that Justin couldn’t keep out of his head.

‘Alia?’ he asked softly, earning her attention instantly. The anger that had crackled off her initially had given way to a helplessness he didn’t know how to help her with.

‘I need to think,’ she told him in a small voice. ‘I just...’

‘You’ve got this,’ Justin told her firmly.

Alia quirked an eyebrow at him, a little of that usual attitude breaking through like sunlight on a cloudy day.

‘Trust me,’ he said.

She surveyed him for a moment, a question behind her eyes that he didn’t know the answer to, before she nodded.

‘OK,’ she said, moving her attention back to the books scattered across the table. ‘I might need a drink for this.’

Justin barely contained a sigh of relief. ‘One hot chocolate coming right up.’

[justmoreocs-writing]

For Alia, a world without magic would be very different. Magic feels like a massive part of her life, of what she does, and without that she’d find something else to fill the gap. With Alia, it’d probably be something with investigating. She’d probably end up being some sort of teenage private investigator, trying to solve random crimes or things that people put to her when she slowly gains a reputation - something Freddy and Carolyn still help her grow because of their eye for business. She’d still probably have that link with Constantine as he’d be a PI himself; as for her relationship with her other siblings, I’m not sure how she’d get along with fiercefray’s OCs Cami and Eden if they didn’t have magic to bond over, but I think her relationship with Justin would be pretty much the same – a case probably would have had her looking into possible links with him, so that might mean there’s a little more tension to begin with.

Justin’s life wouldn’t be much different. He’d still work in a café, still do his best by his family without really caring about his father. He’d probably be a generally calmer person because he doesn’t have to worry about the whole magic thing impacting his family, and the dangers surrounding all that.

There wouldn’t really be anything to link Marty and Alia if there was no magic. Nothing for them to bond over other than a love of books. She’d still head into the bookshop, but she wouldn’t spend nearly as much time with him or Madame L. He’d possibly be closer to Carolyn due to their historical backgrounds, and that’s how he’d realise a developing crush on her best friend.

[hellblazingocs]

@fiercefray and @justmoreocs present: A Constantine Siblings Christmas (Part of the 12 Days of Crossovers Event) “How do you keep finding demons literally everywhere?” Cami asked her younger sister as they browsed the shelves of what felt like the millionth store. Alia grumbled. “Just lucky I guess.” “Hey guys!” Justin called out from the other side of the store. “I think I found something!” Alia and Cami booked it, heading toward the sound of their brother’s voice. As they turned the corner, Eden appeared in front of them. All together, the girls made their way to Justin. He was standing in the cookware aisle, holding a large white mug in his hands. Judging by the smile on his face Cami knew whatever it said had to be hilarious. Justin held it out with pride to his little half-sisters. They all leaned in to read what the mug said. Cami barked out a laugh, “‘World’s Best Dad’?” Alia covered her mouth. “Oh god.” “It’s perfect,” Eden said as she took the mug from Justin. “Right?” he said. He turned to Alia and Cami. “Look, I know he’s done some horrible things, but he’s been trying.” “I’ll get him a participation ribbon then,” said Cami. Alia raised her hand. “I’ll get one of those little trophies too.” Justin just shook his head as Eden begged. “Please, guys. We can’t find anything better and at least for Justin and I, he’s the only dad we got.” Cami and Alia exchanged a knowing look. She was right. Cami had her Papa and Alia had a stepfather. Justin and Eden never had father figures in their lives until John dropped in. “Fine,” sighed Cami. “We’ll get him the mug. The English ones are paying though. I still can’t figure out your damn financial system.” “I’m going to hold in the dumb American jokes,” Alia told her as she took the mug and they made their way to the front. As they passed the home decor, a little Christmas frame caught Cami’s eye. She snatched it from the shelf and showed it to Alia. Alia raised an eyebrow. “Should I ask?” “You guys do those Santa picture things, right?” “Yeah, there’s one not far from here. Why- oh no.” “Justin and Eden will love it… I think John would too. After all, he did miss the wonderful experience of hearing me scream my head off when I did my first one.” Alia nodded. “Fine. But I will be making you pay for it.” “Oh,” Eden uttered softly at the picture. “I’m getting copies made for everyone.” Cami had to admit it was a good picture. It wasn’t like all of them had many pictures together. Most were selfies and they definitely never had any professional ones done like this. She hadn’t since her graduation photos. “We do look good,” Justin said. “Look, Alia’s smile even looks genuine.” “Do you think I’m grumpy all the time or something?” she questioned. “No,” Justin and Eden said in unison. “Yes,” said Cami, though she gave her a teasing smile. “Okay, most of the time.” Alia elbowed her. “You bring out the grump in me. That’s your fault.” “One of the many endearing qualities I got from dear old Dad. Just like how you got his prickly side, Justin got his charisma, and Eden do-gooder thing.” “Nah, you both got that good stuff too,” said Justin. “You just don’t like showing it much.” Cami just shook her head as she looked back down at the picture. The four of them, decked out in their jackets and hats, surrounded the fake Santa with actual smiles on their faces. Justin had his arm thrown over Santa’s shoulders while Eden threw up a little peace sign on his other side. Cami had her arms draped over each other on the back of the throne. Alia knelt in front holding the 'Merry Christmas’ sign she magicked with Eden while they were standing in line. A knot formed in the bottom of Cami’s stomach. Would John like his presents? He had to, right? She hoped she wouldn’t have to wait long to find out.

[fiercefray]

❅❅ 𝕸𝖊𝖗𝖗𝖞 𝕮𝖍𝖗𝖎𝖘𝖙𝖒𝖆𝖘 𝖙𝖔 𝕶𝖎𝖙𝖙𝖊𝖓 :: 𝕱𝖗𝖔𝖒 𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝕮𝖔𝖓𝖘𝖙𝖆𝖓𝖙𝖎𝖓𝖊𝖘 ❅❅

Merry Christmas B. You made this year, while has been extremely crappy not just for me but the entire world, better. Here’s to another year with you.

𝕵𝖚𝖘𝖙𝖎𝖓 𝕸𝖔𝖗𝖊𝖆𝖚𝖝

“We did it,” Justin sighed as he sunk back into the couch between his sisters. “We made it through Christmas without it going horribly wrong.”

He truly couldn’t believe it. It felt like a lifetime ago now when he discovered demons were real and were out not only for him, but three sisters he never met. He stared at the Christmas tree, decked out in tinsel, homemade ornaments, and golden lights. After the year he’s had, he never would have expected a normal holiday again. Instead, his American sisters and their families flew across the ocean to spend the holidays with their British siblings and their shared father. Oddly, it had been nothing but peaceful.

Cami patted his knee. “You’re adorable, Just. Dad’s here. Something could still happen. Like gremlins.”

“Then we have until after midnight, right?” Eden took a sip of her hot chocolate, specially made by Justin.

“That’s just the movie, E.” Alia told her. “I think the bigger problem would be Krampus and it isn’t like we were bad or anything.”

“Unless killing demons and that counts,” said Cami. “Then maybe.”

“It doesn’t,” said Justin. “Now who wants more hot chocolate?”

All the girls raised their cups in response.

Yeah, he thought. This is all I need. My family. Safe and whole and together.

𝕮𝖆𝖒𝖎 𝕽𝖚𝖘𝖘𝖔

“How the hell do you people survive this?” Cami crossed her arms over her chest. She never should have let Alia and Justin talk her and Eden into coming to the Christmas market. Along with them, Eden’s brother and sister, Travis and Ava, as well as Alia’s friends, Carolyn and Marty, had come along. Cami knew Freddy would be there. Where Alia was, Freddy was sure to follow.

Freddy wrapped an arm around her shoulder and pulled her close. “You have thin blood there, California.”

“I don’t have thin blood,” she retorted. “It is perfectly good blood. Great blood in fact. Vampires love turned dhampir blood. Cassius told me so.”

“That’s comforting,” Freddy teased, though she could sense something was off in the tone. They had been dodging the whole ‘will they, won’t they’ for months now.

Maybe now it was time to finally make a move.

“So...” she said as she tried to keep her eyes straight ahead, watching the chaos their group was causing at the hot chocolate stand in front of them. “What’s the most romantic thing to do in London at Christmas?”

Cami couldn’t tell if Freddy was blushing or if the cold had finally gotten to him. He seemed to shake something off before he replied. “Do you like Christmas carols?”

“They’re okay. I need the mood to be right though.”

His smile broadened. “Then Trafalgar Square it is.”

𝕬𝖑𝖎𝖆 𝖀𝖓𝖉𝖊𝖗𝖜𝖔𝖔𝖉

“Everyone is impossible to shop for,” Alia told Carolyn as they wandered through the store. She had already found gifts for everyone’s stockings, which was impressive given how many more people she now had to shop for. Three extra families was no laughing matter there.

But to get them all at least decent gifts to open? Now that was something she wasn’t prepared for.

Carolyn shook her head. “They won’t be when you have the best gift giver with you. All I need is a bit of information on everyone and I can find you something they’ll all love.”

“Even Eden’s grandmother?” Alia asked.

“Grandmas love me,” Carolyn tossed her hair back the best she could under her stocking cap. “It is one of my many charms.”

Alia passed her off her list. It seemed massive as she looked down the long row of names left unchecked. She only had Freddy and Carolyn done. Alia didn’t even know what to get her parents or John. God help her when it came time to find the perfect gift for Marty.

But if there were two girls who could tackle such an impossible task, it was the two of them.

Carolyn took her hand and the two of them dashed off in their quest to find the best presents anyone could ever hope to get.

𝕰𝖉𝖊𝖓 𝕸𝖎𝖞𝖆𝖌𝖎

Eden stood proudly as she looked on the display of the Christmas village. Alia’s mom let her help set it up. In fact, everyone had let Eden help with their Christmas traditions as she set up the Christmas party.

There was music, great food, decorations covering every bit of surface she could get her hands on. This is what Eden had been looking forward to since Halloween.

John came to stand next to her. “You did a good job, luv.”

Eden smiled. “Thanks Dad. I’m glad you like it.”

“Better than any Christmas I’ve ever had,” he told her. They both let the words sink in. Eden knew her father had always had a rough life. Yet here he was, standing here with her and the family he brought together, even if unintentionally.

“Well, we can make it even better,” she told him. Eden motioned for him to bend down. Once he was close enough, she whispered. “I had Justin spike the eggnog. Not to mention we all got you the best present.”

John raised a brow at that. “Care to give me a hint?”

She shook her head with a secretive grin. “Nope.”

He gave her a nod before looking toward the Christmas tree, knowing there was something there for him. Eden wanted this to be the best Christmas ever and now she was sure it would be.

[thevoyageurmoteplass-edits]

Random Magical Entrepreneur Story Edits

Trying to get back into making gifs and things so there might be more edits on the horizon. We'll see what happens.

[thevoyageurmoteplass-edits]

Random Dialogue Prompts for Magical Entrepreneur Story

Gif One- Freddy: You're welcome. / Justin: This is mad.

Gif Two- Freddy: It's not your fault.

Gif Three- Alia: Zephaniah?

Gif Four- Alia: You have to stop.

Gif Five- Alia: I forgive you. I shouldn't, though.

Gif Six- Freddy: Al, is that-? // Alia: We need to leave. Now. // Demon: So soon? {I was meant to add Alia's bit to the gif before but forgot... oh well}

Gif Seven- Freddy: What are you gonna do? / Alia: Whatever it takes.

A/N: I'll probably write drabbles for these at some point.

[thevoyageurmoteplass-writing]

‘Alia, stop,’ Justin said, instinctively catching her wrist and earning her attention in an instant. Where he might have expected to see angry reprimand burning behind her dark eyes – eyes he recently found it impossible not to realise were the same as his – he was wrong. For the briefest of moments there was a flash of sadness. Of hurt. Whatever words he might have hoped to offer her in comfort died in his throat.

Silence settled heavily and uncomfortably between them. Still, Justin didn’t remove his hand from around her wrist, finding a kind of reassurance in the contact. A reminder that she was still there.

‘You did –’

‘The right thing?’ she asked, though the question was hollow. ‘Something I should have done way sooner?’ She scoffed bitterly, shook her head ever so slightly. ‘My best?’

‘Something stupidly difficult,’ Justin said, very slowly uncurling his fingers. Thankfully, Alia didn’t sprint away, not that he thought fleeing was actually an option for her. Alia Underwood faced every situation face on, no matter the impact it had on her, that was something he’d learnt very quickly.

‘Dismissals aren’t hard,’ she told him, though there was no arrogance in her tone. It was a simple fact to her. A skill honed into instinct.

‘You’re not normally their friend first though.’

Alia flinched ever so slightly, tried to cover the movement by gently fiddling with the pendant of her necklace. But Justin had spent too long learning to read people, too long getting to know her as a friend before the truth had been spilt.

‘It wasn’t a mistake befriending him,’ Justin assured her, knowing better than to say Zeph’s name. If there was one lesson Claudine had taught him and forced him to parrot back too many times it was that: Names call to beings.

‘Yes, it was,’ Alia said bitterly.

‘No,’ Justin insisted, taking a step closer to his sister. There was an almost unimpressed look behind her eyes, but she didn’t relent a step, didn’t shove him away. Both were reactions he’d seen from her to others, both amicable reminders and irritable gestures. ‘There are always shades of grey, perspectives in stories. He wasn’t all bad.’

‘He got through various protections though,’ she admitted in a small voice, and Justin knew that was one of the things scaring her the most. More than the betrayal, than the fact he had broken her heart by forcing her to dismiss him because of an injury sustained protecting the people that meant the most to her. Those were things, perhaps not healthily, she could box away and ignore. But he’d bested her in some respects when it came to skill, and that stung.

‘Doesn’t make him bad,’ Justin countered reasonably. ‘Marty can get through some, right?’

‘He’s not a demon,’ she reminded him simply.

[thevoyageurmoteplass-writing]

‘Do you have peanuts?’ Alia asked, pulling Justin’s attention away from the latte art he was trying to perfect, and towards her in an instant. His attention raked over her quickly, searching for signs of distress; for the tell-tale warnings of an allergic reaction that she’d begrudgingly shared with him simply to stop Freddy doing it on her behalf. But there was nothing, and the slight tightening of her expression assured him the concern didn’t go unnoticed.

‘Alia,’ he started, but she cut him off with a shake of the head.

‘Claudine,’ she said, spitting their father’s name like a curse, like it didn’t still shock her that it took a demon to explain their link, ‘said I should check places that could be used against me. Like it’s not already enough Freddy checks everything.’

‘Even you’ve said that doesn’t work,’ Justin pointed out, faltering slightly beneath her glare.

Alia leant forward on the counter, raising herself up a little to make it more comfortable. ‘And neither will asking every place I go if there’s even a chance of cross contamination. If demons want to use this against me, they’ll bring their own peanuts.’

Justin opened his mouth to argue, but found nothing forthcoming. She had a point, and yet there were times when her blaze attitude to her allergy concerned him. He knew it was better she didn’t let it negatively impact her life, but a little more caution might have made things easier for his anxiety around her.

‘Exactly,’ she said, moving her arms from the counter.

‘Maybe we could say we’re a no nuts establishment.’

‘No,’ Alia said quickly. ‘For way more reasons than it being impossible to police, but I’m gonna go with that as my main one.’

Justin ran a weary hand through his hair. The thought of demons targeting Alia was bad enough, but the addition of them using her allergy against her was something that made him feel sick. He made a mental note to speak to Claudine about what else they could do to try protecting her, even if it meant maybe putting a wedge between himself and Alia.

[thevoyageurmoteplass-edits]

Magical Entrepreneur Story Introduction

Richard Claudine started investigating the occult when his best friend went missing and the only clue was a strange symbol on the floor, and random chanting having been the only information the police received from a possible witness. He was eleven years old at the time, and quickly found himself getting drawn into a world of magic and demons, making a name for himself amongst those that had had information passed down for generations. So, when he hears of a possible attack on a prestigious school, he can’t help but investigate what exactly is going on.

Life, in Justin’s eyes, was good. So he didn’t have the best of jobs, and he was still living at home with his mother and younger sister because prices in London were so far out of his reach it was ridiculous, but he didn’t mind. He loved his family, and his colleagues were good people. There were even customers to the little coffee shop that he’d miss if they didn’t come in as normal. So, when a strange, creepy man comes looking for a regular, Justin begins to wonder if things really are as boring as they seem.

If Alia was completely honest, she’d never meant to get into all things occult. The research was idle curiosity, and the putting it into practice was merely to see how much truth there was in the books. Soon, she finds herself using that information to protect the people she cares about, and the wider school community as more ominous symbols appear around the place. It’s always been something she did alone, a secret even from her closest of friends if only to protect them from the dangers, but what harm could really come from them learning the truth?

[thevoyageurmoteplass-writing]

Magical Entrepreneur Story Introduction

Richard Claudine started investigating the occult when his best friend went missing and the only clue was a strange symbol on the floor, and random chanting having been the only information the police received from a possible witness. He was eleven years old at the time, and quickly found himself getting drawn into a world of magic and demons, making a name for himself amongst those that had had information passed down for generations. So, when he hears of a possible attack on a prestigious school, he can’t help but investigate what exactly is going on.

Life, in Justin’s eyes, was good. So he didn’t have the best of jobs, and he was still living at home with his mother and younger sister because prices in London were so far out of his reach it was ridiculous, but he didn’t mind. He loved his family, and his colleagues were good people. There were even customers to the little coffee shop that he’d miss if they didn’t come in as normal. So, when a strange, creepy man comes looking for a regular, Justin begins to wonder if things really are as boring as they seem.

If Alia was completely honest, she’d never meant to get into all things occult. The research was idle curiosity, and the putting it into practice was merely to see how much truth there was in the books. Soon, she finds herself using that information to protect the people she cares about, and the wider school community as more ominous symbols appear around the place. It’s always been something she did alone, a secret even from her closest of friends if only to protect them from the dangers, but what harm could really come from them learning the truth?

[thevoyageurmoteplass-writing]

‘That kid’s in here a lot nowadays,’ Amber commented as soon as the door closed behind Alia.

Justin sighed, nonetheless a small smirk curved his lips as he turned to face her. ‘Surely you remember what school projects are like.’

Amber shrugged, turned her attention back to filling the chocolate shaker before the commuter rush. ‘Pretty sure posh kids don’t get projects that force them to check some allergy standards at an independent coffee shop. They wouldn’t want their little darlings mixing with the peasant classes if they could help it.’

Slowly, Justin blinked at her. ‘What makes you say posh kids? Could just be well-spoken.’

Amber scoffed, causing some chocolate shavings to tumble onto the counter. She brushed them away with the side of her hand as she spoke. ‘You remember what district of London you’re in right now don’t you, Peckham?’

‘Ha, ha,’ said Justin dryly. The cross city cycle to get to work only highlighted the difference between where he lived and where he worked; from council estate to affluent area. Sometimes, there was no forgetting which district of London he was in.

‘Anyway, it’s more the fact she’s been in here a couple of times with that Ashcroft kid than anything.’

Justin shot her a blank look as he wiped over a couple of trays that had been left for cleaning.

Amber let out an exasperated groan. ‘You are incorrigible, Justin Moreaux. Only the kid of two political bigwigs. Two opposing political bigwigs no less.’

‘And you’re just mentioning this now?’ Justin asked sceptically. It was normal for Amber to defer all political talk to someone else, knowing how little attention Justin paid to much of it. But celebrity news? Her failure to mention, even in passing, a minor celebrity had been in the café a few times in recent months was unusual.

‘Thought it’d be some reminiscing thing, you know?’ she asked as a new customer entered. Justin glanced up briefly at the new arrival, shot the blond man a small smile as Amber lowered her voice. ‘Like, we’d talk about that one time Fred Ashcroft came here just to make dull days a bit better. Didn’t expect him to still be coming here every other week!’

‘Good afternoon, what can I get you?’ Justin greeted their customer, trying to cover the smirk that was fighting its way onto his face from Amber’s comments.

‘All right, mate?’ the man said, Welsh accent obvious. He opened his mouth, probably to order, but was cut off by the door swinging open with more force than was strictly necessary.

‘Claudine, no,’ said Alia, voice firmer than Justin had heard it before.

A smirk tugged at the man’s lips. ‘Whatever she normally has, a black coffee and your usual, cheers.’

Alia strode over, radiating such irritation that she seemed much taller than her short stature.

‘Don’t worry, love,’ the man said as Amber started preparing the order. ‘It’s just a little chat about the possible end of the world.’

Alia groaned and it took a moment for the words to fully sink in for Justin as he brought the order up on the till. ‘That’ll be… I’m sorry, pardon?’

[justmoreocs-writing]

If Alia was being completely honest, the only reason she’d agreed to the meeting was three-fold.

One: Justin would be there. If she didn’t go to make sure Constantine didn’t terrify the young man then what kind of person was she really?

Two: her own curiosity made it impossible for her to simply ignore the invitation, the possibility of a job that would be bigger than anything she’d seen at the school. It would be good practice, if nothing else. She refused to think about what might happen if it all went sour; that kind of thinking never helped, and she did her best to keep thoughts like that at the very back of her mind if possible.

The third reason was Freddy. She was under no illusions that if she didn’t go, he’d go in her stead, just to find out what was going on; to see if there had been any truth behind the vague taunts of demons over the past few months. Taunts that, thinking about it, Alia regretted not doing more to follow up on. Even if it was only to prove them false, to show that demons would say anything if they thought it might help their cause of getting free.

But now, sitting in the little café which Constantine had said would be the best place for a clandestine meeting (‘No one will pay us attention,’ he’d told her when she’d questioned him, lighting up a cigarette as he spoke. ‘People are too wrapped up in themselves.’). She’d wanted to argue with him, but she couldn’t – annoyingly – fault his logic. She and Freddy often spoke about cases at school and no one so much as batted an eyelid. She didn’t know if it was because they were used to it by now, or because they simply weren’t listening, but it didn’t matter. The logic was sound, and if anyone did try to listen in, the din of background noise would make it difficult to properly hear anything.

Alia glanced briefly at Justin; at the slightly greying colour to his face. Finding out Constantine was his dad hadn’t been the thing that shook his world, nor had it been the fact they were half siblings, it had been the fact that there were demons and magic and a whole host of other things stalking through the shadows. How, or rather why, he’d swung holiday to come on the little trip, she wasn’t sure. Perhaps his mother had wanted him to get to know his father. Perhaps he’d just wanted to go to America and the arrival of John Constantine into his life had been the perfect excuse.

Either way, a small part of her was tempted to tell him just to walk away from it all. Meet the two others that were due to arrive – from only child to one of four, Alia’s head still spun slightly at the thought – and then to go off on his own holiday. Pretend the new world that had opened up to him was nothing more than an idle daydream.

That was what she wanted to do – desperately because she could see the effect it was all having on him – but she knew she couldn’t. Even Constantine had looked a little on edge when he mentioned he needed all four of them. That there was something bigger than the magic he knew alone. He hadn’t admitted that in so many words, but Alia could guess. If it had been something he could handle he probably wouldn’t have even bothered gathering them. He might just simply have slipped away from St. Michael’s after everything had happened. Be nothing more to her than the blond handyman who knew a little magic; John Constantine, an occult detective to look up to, and the father she’d never known, would merely be a figure of myth.

‘Do they know?’ Alia asked, turning her attention to Constantine.

He toyed with the wooden stirrer he’d had in hand since sitting, his gaze drifting to the doorway, scouting it out as well as keeping an eye out for the others. ‘You’re all on equal footing, love.’

Alia let out a soft scoff. That hadn’t been the reason for her question. She didn’t give a toss about if they knew the whole story, didn’t care if he’d shared with them more than he had with herself and Justin. She’d just needed to break the silence between them. It had become something like a physical barrier, something that sent a nervous chill over her skin.

Slowly, Constantine’s attention slipped towards her, towards Justin. She could have sworn his gaze drifted over the little booth where Freddy was sitting, a silent watcher of the whole thing despite her attempts to deter him.

‘Do they know magic?’ Justin asked, his voice so low Alia almost missed it; he spoke into his mug, his attention on the table rather than either of them.

‘One,’ Constantine admitted. ‘But the other knew about vampires and demons.’

That got Justin’s full attention. For the briefest of moments, Alia could have sworn something like hurt flashed behind his dark eyes. Out of all of them, he’d been the only one outside of this world.

‘Not equal footing then,’ he murmured, before lapsing back into silence.

Alia shot their father – still a strange realisation – a sharp look. But he merely offered her a one shouldered shrug and turned his attention back to the door.

With a sigh, she cupped her hands a little more tightly around her mug. She really hoped this trip wasn’t a massive mistake. That coming here, that meeting up with the others, wasn’t something she might end up regretting.

[justmoreocs-writing]

‘Let. Her. Go,’ Cami said through gritted teeth. Alia didn’t need to be looking to know her older sister’s grip on the stake had her knuckles burning white. She didn’t need to see the way her teeth were almost bared; eyes tracking the idle pacing of not-Eden, concern burning behind them all the while. Alia didn’t need to see any of it because she’d seen it all; it was practically burnt into her memory.

The demon possessing Eden laughed. Eden’s laugh with a hint of unfamiliar maliciousness that made the whole thing wrong. That made it harder to ignore exactly what was happening.

What they’d let happen.

‘You know I’m not doing to do that,’ the demon sneered.

‘Use me instead.’ Justin, adding his two pence despite the tremor of fear in his voice. Despite his desire to be as far from the magic and hell that came with it.

Another laugh; Alia tensed but kept her eyes on the page. There had to be another way. She refused to accept the only option was to kill the… To kill Eden.

‘Oh honey, you’re not worth anything,’ not-Eden said, voice almost a caress.

‘That’s a lie,’ Alia said, finally looking up. It tore at her, seeing Eden but barely recognising her. There was no brightness to her expression, no easy smile or lightened eyes. Even her fashion sense appeared to currently be controlled by the demon. Still, for Eden’s sake she matched that cold, unrelenting stare.

‘Is it?’ not-Eden asked sweetly, cocking her head like an interested puppy. An oddly Eden gesture. ‘What exactly does he bring to this little outfit?’ She waved her hand dismissively between them all. ‘I have decent magic. Buffy here slays vampires. Hell, even you have a little box of tricks to explore. But him? I could snap him and it wouldn’t make a blind bit of difference.’

The posturing was all it took for Alia to throw a shield spell in front of Justin before not-Eden struck. It was pathetic, little more than a ward, but it absorbed the painful strike sent his way. Shattered into a cascade of colourful shards as the superior magic collided with it.

Not-Eden gave a slow clap. ‘Well done. Now, do you want to share the good news or shall I?’

‘You’ve got something?’ Cami found her voice before Justin could. It was more demand than question, the urgency of it palpable. Still, hope lingered in her voice; a craving for a concrete plan. After all, possessions and demons were Alia’s domain. This was meant to be her strength.

Alia’s eyes narrowed at not-Eden. Even looking so much like the sweetest of the siblings, there was something innately wrong with it all. Slowly, however, she trailed her attention to Cami, felt Justin’s eyes on her as well. She fought to keep her voice steady, to give them hope when her own reserves were so dangerously low.

‘Yes,’ she said, looking at her siblings and hearing the low, disbelieving hiss from the demon. ‘There was a book.’ She glanced at the demon, saw the eagerness behind its eyes; it really wasn’t sure. Alia beckoned her siblings closer, but kept her voice a touch too loud, laying seeds as she’d done before and really hoping the ploy may take even a slight root. Anything to buy them time, however much it broke her heart to leave Eden in the claws of that thing any longer. ‘Buried in a New Orleans tomb. Supposedly a Witch Doctor who could banish all spirits, even those meant to be in a body. We get that, we get Eden back.’

‘Oh honey,’ not-Eden crooned, before everything went black.

[thevoyageurmoteplass-writing]

Alia knew better than to trust a demon, knew better than to let Freddy tag along with her when she needed to be focused on making a magic circle. But sometimes things simply don’t work out the way they should. Sometimes things go so catastrophically wrong there’s nothing that can be done to rectify them. This whole situation had been exactly one of those times, and she was now trying to come back from the cataclysmic misfortune without getting anyone hurt.

‘Just go, Al. What’s the worst that can happen?’

Not waiting to burst Freddy’s bubble, Alia had said nothing about the multitude of problems that might actually come from listening to the taunts of a demon and had followed the words to Oxford Street. It was more out of necessity than her own real curiosity that she was even going. Though, that wasn’t to say she didn’t want to go, to find some answers to musings that had circled her mind without her really dwelling on them, because she really did; it was more that she’d wanted research, wanted facts from reliable sources and not demons trying not to get sent back to Hell. And yet she’d had to go to the little café, otherwise Freddy would have gone, and she refused to let that happen. At least if she went and the whole thing turned out to be a massive trap she was in a better position to try escaping it than Freddy ever would be.

The quaint café was just off the high street, away from the hustle and bustle of the main road, away from clamouring tourists and London commuters. It surprised her that it wasn’t some chain place – statistically, more troublesome demons preferred corporate companies, more people and yet less likely to get spotted doing terrible things. It didn’t allow her to let her guard down, but it certainly made her question why she’d been sent somewhere like this. It didn’t fit in with the usual demon maliciousness. Somehow, that made it worse.

With a sigh, knowing the only way to get anything even resembling answers was to go in, she pushed open the door. The hubbub of café noise was low and familiar, undercut by a radio station’s general chatter. Paintings lined one wall, none of which Alia recognised or liked. It seemed none of the chairs matched; large armchairs sat alongside brightly coloured plastic seats and the occasional wooden stool, all crowded around tables that ranged from bog-standard round ones to those with shapes so interesting it was as if the designer had simply made an inkblot and decided to construct that.

‘Hi,’ someone greeted brightly; a young man with a small nose ring, a too bright smile and a tea towel slung almost fashionably over one shoulder.

Alia’s eyes narrowed, searching for a sign of possible possession or magical trouble radiating off him. Looking for anything which might disprove the demon’s words.

‘You know you’re only an only child for your mother, right?’ it had said, words spoken in Latin so Freddy translated faster than she could.

He hadn’t spoken quietly enough though when he murmured the words, and Alia hadn’t needed to look at the demon to know there was a smirk on its face. ‘Strange for two of you to be so close and yet never having met.’

The demon had caught Freddy’s attention and the whole thing had spiralled. It had culminated in her being stood opposite a barista wearing a smile and the nametag reading “Justin” and trying to see if there were any subtle similarities between the two of them; part of her really hoping she might just see the trap here instead of the truth.

Unsure of what to say, knowing she had to say something because Justin was still there, surreptitiously surveying her as if concerned she might try nicking something or else robbing the till, she tried for a small smile. ‘Do you prepare drinks away from nut preparation areas?’

‘Of course. If you let Sian –’

But Alia was no longer listening. Why hadn’t she asked something that would link them through their possibly shared father? She suddenly wished she’d packed the topic cards Freddy had suggested, instead of ignoring them, deciding the whole trip was doomed before it had even started.

‘Miss?’ Justin asked, voice tentative.

Alia shook her head. She couldn’t do this. Not now. She’d rather face a demon from the deepest pits of Hell than deal with this particular conversation.

How exactly did you approach a stranger and tell them you thought they were your half-brother and that your father’s an occult investigator with a penchant for trouble and practicing magic?

Instead, she smiled brightly. ‘Thanks. You’re the first café to answer. All the others fobbed me off because I didn’t want to order, I just have a survey for class.’

Justin nodded understandingly. ‘If you have any other questions, I’m sure anyone here’ll help.’ He lowered his voice conspiratorially. ‘If not, find me and I’ll do it. Justin, by the way.’ He tapped his name badge, as if to prove he was being honest.

‘Thanks, Justin, I’ll bear that in mind. I’m Alia.’

‘Nice to meet you, Alia,’ he said, the smile never faltering as she turned to leave. ‘Have a good day. And good luck!’

‘You too,’ she said before stepping outside and hastily closing the door between them. This was obviously going to be a lot more difficult than she’d first imagined.

[justmoreocs-writing]

‘Were you ever planning on telling us?’ Alia asked, her voice dangerously low and yet still it carried from the doorway, drew Justin’s attention in an instant. There was a slip of paper in her hand; the trembling of it, mixed with the fire behind her dark eyes, and the fact that even for someone so small her rage seemed to fill the room was enough to make his heart thunder.

A weary sigh from their father. A flurry of movement as Cami stood, as she snatched the paper from their younger sister’s hand. Her eyes skimmed it, narrowed, and her outrage matched Alia’s in mere seconds. Already she had a hand on the hilt of the stake that never once left her side; she stalked closer to their father, murderous intent radiating from her.

Justin was moving in a heartbeat to step between his sisters and their father. A fool’s move, but instinct.

But he wasn’t quick enough. The sharp slap of Cami’s hand as she cracked it across their father’s cheek filled the room.

Possibly stupidly, Justin placed a careful hand on her lower arm. He felt the tension in her muscles, knew she was preparing for another attack. Only barely holding in her outrage, as if coming to the realisation that John wasn’t a vampire. That her usual instincts might just be the undoing of him if she wasn’t careful; if John didn’t even try to protect himself.

'What is it?’ he asked, if only to distract her from the storm that raged inside of her.

'Ask him,’ spat Cami, the venom in her voice enough to make Justin cringe. She shook off his hand with ease and walked briskly back to the doorway, as if deciding that space might be the only thing to stop her from killing their father.

'It wasn’t important,’ said John simply, rubbing his jaw. To his credit, he only winced slightly. Justin couldn’t help but wonder how many times people had slapped him for his attitude, for the irritation he’d caused them if the stories he’d finally managed to coax out of his mother before the trip were to be believed.

'Wasn’t important?’ sneered Alia, voice calm and far more terrifying for it. 'It wasn’t important to tell us that there was someone after our souls? Tell us that we’ve made it easy for them by being together? Was it still not important when they almost took Eden?’

A slight noise, an attempt to cover it with a cough, had Justin looking to their youngest. Her eyes were still haunted by that ordeal, despite how hard she’d tried to fight it. He still caught her faraway look every so often, still wished there was more he could have done.

'You’re more protected together,’ John said simply, his hand falling to his side. Already Justin was beginning to recognise the movements though, the little tics that came before magic was about to happen. John was ready to protect himself if the anger of the others mounted any further.

'Bullshit,’ snapped Cami. 'Hunters circle their prey to take them in one fell swoop if they outnumber or outgun them. Why is this any different?’

'Because you’re not defenceless,’ said John, a little heat behind his voice.

A cold laugh, a dismissal from Cami, but it was Alia’s remark that made silence fall over them like a blanket.

'No thanks to you, Dad.’ And with that, she stormed out.

Cami shoved the paper at Justin before stalking after her. The set of her shoulders, the rage that had roiled behind her eyes, he felt a little sorry for whatever vampire she came across next.

Tentatively, he glanced down at the note. The promise that their souls belonged to Hell. His stomach churned. This was the reason John had them together. Not some father-kid bonding time. Not some mysterious problem he needed them all for - though perhaps that was part of it. But because someone was after them. He wasn’t necessarily protecting them out of the kindness of his heart, because he wanted to be their father. It was more because there was a threat to his own, and he was trying to stop it. Justin wondered if it hadn’t been for the note, for the promise that those words held for the four of them, if he’d have ever met John Constantine.

Slowly, he moved in front of Eden. Her wide eyes were skittering over their father trying to read something there but coming up blank at the shuttered look on his face.

'Come on, E,’ he said softly, placing a careful hand on her elbow. She didn’t resist, just allowed him to lead her out of the study like something of a ghost. For once, her constant excitement and cheer gone. Somehow, it was the worst of anything that had happened in those few short minutes.