Those Three Girls

13. A Demon And Her Child

"Where'd he go?" Anna-Beth worried, looking around, franticly "Mr. Tumnus?"

"He's run away to stop the White Witch from chasing us," Aslan explained "He has risked his well being for the safety of you three children. No doubt the White Witch will turn him into stone."

"Oh no!" Bella gasped "We have to do something!"

"Do not worry, Bella," Aslan instructed "Mr. Tumnus will be saved in the end."

"Goody!" she clapped.

"Onto other matters," Jake changed the subject by looking up to the setting sun "It'll be dark soon. I'm dead tired. We did just have to deal with that messed up clown, after all."

"I thought he was funny," Bella stated.

"You're a child, Bella," Jake informed.

"He said that was a good thing," Bella countered.

"And I clearly seem to agree with him, don't I?" Jake said, sarcastically.

"Jerk!" Bella spat back, throwing another rock at her "Go die somewhere!"

"You two fight worse than a married couple," Anna-Beth sighed.

"WHAT?" Jake demanded.

"Eeeewwwww," Bella replied.

"Ohranotlikethat," Anna-Beth rushed "Jeez. Get your heads out of the gutter."

"You probably support Yaoi too," Jake shook her head.

"Hey!" Anna-Beth demanded "Yaoi can be really hot!"

"Yeah," Jake admitted "Okay. Maybe."

"Ya-what now?" Bella inquired.

"One boy fucking another boy," Jake threw out. Bella's eyes widened.

"JAKE!" Anna-Beth scowled, rushing over and covering Bella's ears.

"What?" Jake questioned "She asked, didn't she?"

"Let's just pretend the last few exchanges never happened," Anna-Beth sighed, removing her hands from Bella's ears "So... Yes. It is getting late. Perhaps we should try and get together some kind of-" She stopped and stared at whatever was behind Jake and Bella.

"Some kind of what?" Jake demanded. Anna-Beth simply turned her around and both stared at the shelter before them. Inside, Aslan was patiently waiting for them to finish their bickering.

"Are you quite finished?" he asked, kindly but sternly.

"Um... Yes," Jake nodded, dragging Bella towards the shelter and forcing her to lay down against Aslan's warm stomach before sitting beside her, threateningly.

"Stay," Jake commanded.

"But I'm not tired yet!" Bella wined.

"Stay," Jake repeated. Anna-Beth simply smiled and sat down at Aslan's head, giving the other two girls the room to spread out instead of crowding all three of them together. Not soon after, Jake and Bella fell asleep. Bella leaning on Jake's shoulder as the elder snarled at anyone who might try to threaten her and the younger had the smallest hint of a peaceful smile playing at her lips. Clearly, they'd already taken to each other like old friends.

"Why haven't you fallen asleep yet?" Aslan asked Anna-Beth, who was still awake, laying beside his head.

"I'm just thinking," she shrugged.

"About what?" Aslan inquired.

"About my mission," Anna-Beth explained "I've got an Ancient Egyptian spirit living inside of me, you know."

"Yes," Aslan nodded "I did know that. Zaliaanna, I believe, is her name."

"Mmhmm," she nodded "Zalia was just a peasant girl before the Pharaoh saved her. Her family was killed by sorcerers and her brothers turned against one another. She killed herself, I believe. With a poison?"

"You seem to know a lot about her," Aslan noticed.

"Well, yeah," Anna-Beth chuckled, dryly "I've got to. We're on a mission together to have our revenge on the Pharaoh."

"Didn't the Pharaoh save her though?" Aslan questioned.

"Well," Anna-Beth explained "Yes, but he said he loved her and then didn't. That's a cruel thing to do."

"I'm sure you've felt that yourself, Annabethica," Aslan said.

"I've had my fair share of lies," she shrugged "Sure. There was Joseph, my brother, my father. Even Seto has issues from time to time, but I don't mind because nobody's perfect. I love everybody, even if they've given me a reason not to because I know how thinking someone loves you and then finding out they didn't feels. It just made more sense to not hate anyone. Who'd understand a lost lamb better than a lost lamb, herself?"

"Perhaps," Aslan nodded, keeping quiet for a moment "Your brothers. What are they to you?"

"Once," Anna-Beth explained "Jaske was my best friend. He's... Different now. Not loving or caring or happy like he once was. He's always angry now. Blane was always too crazy to get to really know. Like a tornado, no matter how fascinating it seems, it's a death wish to try and get too close. Andy is still young and Westly is a spy so I rarely get to see him. I remember times when me and Jaske and Blane and Westly could all get along fine and were happy, but those days are gone. It's all about Zalia now. I have to watch how attached I get to Seto now too. It's confusing but I have to try."

"Love is a dangerous thing," Aslan warned "Because it's so powerful. You can ruin or be someone's life with just a four letter word. Amazing, isn't it?"

"Yes," Anna-Beth agreed, smiling at her sleeping companions "Dangerous... But also beautiful."