DISCLAIMER: THE WONDERFUL WORLD OF THE HOLLOWS AND ALL CHARACTERS THEREIN ARE OWNED BY THE LOVELY KIM HARRISON.

In the Bedroom

CHAPTER 1

The silver bracelet on my wrist sparkled in the afternoon light that was filtering through the kitchen window. It was a little after midday and I was cooking. Baking, actually.

I had baked a cake. It was a deep, rich, Black Forest gateau and my mouth hadn't stopped watering since the baking process started. Ivy and I had been grocery shopping earlier in the week when I found my inspiration in the form of a sinfully delicious tart cherry liquor in an aisle containing a veritable sundry of exotic, imported culinary delights. The frosting was going to consist of whipped cream, cherries and chocolate shavings. Yum!

I was currently in the process of icing said cake when I announced my plans to "visit" Al. And from there, discussions… or, rather… arguments… ensued.

Jenks flitted above my head like an angry hornet, making me dizzy. Red dust sifted off of him in buckets like confetti at a parade, indicating a mix of emotions – mainly, nervousness, annoyance and anger.

He paused his flitting for a moment and gave me his best Peter Pan pose before he started. "You stupid ass witch," he admonished, shaking his head. His blond, shoulder-length hair shone in the sunlight like liquid gold. His ordinarily gorgeous, emerald green eyes had turned cold and calculating. They seared my retinas like green lasers as he narrowed his eyes to slits and continued his tirade.

"Am I the only one here who thinks this is dumbest idea Rache has had in her long history of dumb ideas?"

Ivy looked down at the file she was working on and Bis shrugged, his bat-like wings moving in time with his leathery shoulders. Since my recovery from having my aura shredded courtesy of Ku'Sox, the day-walking, genetically-defective demon of my nightmares, Bis had been staying awake for longer and longer periods of time throughout the day. Al once told me that gargoyles didn't start day-walking until they were well into their second century of life. Bis, however, being only hair over the half-century mark, had apparently defied all odds. I looked up at him sitting on top of the refrigerator, his usual hangout. I met his red eyes that expressed both concern and understanding. He was a brave kid and he would go along with whatever I decided. He was, after all, my gargoyle. He had bonded with me in spite of everything. Despite my attempts to avoid speaking with him and my avoiding him like the Turn when all indications pointed to him having bonded with me, he had come to my rescue and saved my life. I gave him a hopeful smile which he returned in kind. We had been through a lot in our short time together and I couldn't imagine my life without him.

"Am I the only one here," Jenks ranted, "who remembers how furious Al was when he attacked us in the hospital? When he thought Rache was brain dead and he started trying to take Trent to the ever-after, tiny cookie-maker piece by tiny cookie-maker piece?"

"Tink's perky, pink titties, Rache!" Jenks raged. "God only knows what he'll do when you pop over there and yell 'Surprise! I'm alive!'"

Ivy sighed but didn't look up from her paperwork. "Jenks, Rachel is old enough to make her own decisions."

"Rache," Jenks pleaded, "you didn't see him! Al was one vengeful, fucked-up, bad-ass demon on a mission to kill us all! And now you just want to drop by with no warning or anything. And you expect everything to be F.I.N.E. fine?"

"Alright, Aerosmith. Hold your horses," I countered. "Maybe not fine, per se" I admitted.

"Per se!" Jenks scoffed.

"I just.. it's hard for me to explain, Jenks. I don't feel like myself with this on," I said, holding up my hand as the bracelet fell further down my arm. "I don't want to keep running away from what I am. I need to face it," I said, meeting his stare. Even as I said it, I felt a twinge of guilt somewhere in the midst of all my other emotions. I was leaving my main motivation unspoken and hoped neither Jenks nor Ivy could tell. That I missed Al, that my life felt empty without him, wasn't something they would find particularly persuasive let alone be something they could understand. Hell, I didn't even understand it.

"And," I added, lifting a finger to my lips to taste a bit of the whipped cream I was using to ice the cake. "I'm prying him with sweets. Al loves cake!" I exclaimed. I licked my lips, savoring the sweetness of the cream. Hmm… he does, doesn't he? Or does he just think I love cake? Now that I think of it, I think he wanted to bake me a cake. Yes, that was it. To get into my… what did he say? Cute, little, black, lace panties? Okay, maybe cake is sending the wrong message.

I thought Ivy had decided to stay out of the argument when she lifted her head, her black, poker-straight hair falling forward to perfectly frame her face. "She's a demon, Jenks" Ivy interjected. "She belongs there with them," she said in quiet resignation.

My mouth was open and my tongue was halfway to flapping when Ivy held up a hand and stopped me from objecting.

"You belong here too, Rachel," she said, a half smile lifting one corner of her mouth. "But you have a place with them as well. I understand that. And Jenks," she said, shifting her gaze to him. "You need to understand that, too."

Jenks lowered himself to rest on the small spatula I was using to apply the icing. He walked along the handle and helped himself to a handful of whipped cream.

"This is really good," he mumbled over a mouthful of icing. "He'll love it."

I smiled. "Thanks, Jenks."

"Could you at least wait til sunset, though, Rache?" he pleaded. "Call it pixie intuition, but Al doesn't seem like the type of guy who likes surprises."

"If I wait til then, I'll risk him coming here and wreaking havoc on the church," I reasoned in response. "This way, I can pop over to his kitchen with the cake and can have dinner waiting for him when he wakes."

Jenks looked at me as if I had sprouted a second head. His jaw dropped to the floor and he blanched, looking both astounded and nauseous. "What are you now? His wife?"

I blushed, wondering how Jenks and Ivy would react if I admitted to them I was starting to have feelings for the demon. "Ha, ha. Very funny, Jenks," I laughed.

I unwrapped a large chunk of chocolate and started grating it into a large bowl. The chocolate shavings would go on the outside of the cake and then I would finish it off by adding fresh, morello cherries on top. A perfectly English dessert for my perfectly English demon. Wait. Did I really just think that?

"I know Al must be pissed about losing me," I admitted, slight nervousness causing an increase in my chocolate grating tempo. And maybe he's even a bit heart-broken as well. Before I could stop myself, I blurted, "You know what they say. The way to a man's heart is through his stomach. Trust me. This cake is simply good planning on my part."

Ivy's mouth opened, showing her razor-sharp incisors. "Oh, my God. She is his wife!" she echoed.

"Look, guys!" I pleaded, shaking the large chunk of chocolate in the air for added effect. "You're really blowing this out of proportion. I'm going to go over there. With Bis. Make nice with Al. He'll probably drag me all over the ever-after, putting me on display or whatever. And Bis and I will be back tomorrow afternoon. I promise."

Jenks and Ivy looked anxious and skeptical as they watched me finish grating the chocolate. I began applying the shavings around the edge of the cake, gently spinning the cake with one hand and using my other hand to apply the chocolate.

When I finished, I wiped my hands on my apron and Ivy stood. She walked up to me and gave me a hug, her earthy scent of vampiric incense mixing with the sweet smell of whipped cream and chocolate.

"Be careful," she whispered, and she released her embrace. She gathered her file and walked out of the kitchen. "See you tomorrow afternoon, Rachel," she called out from the other room.

Jenks floated up to the top of the refrigerator to meet Bis at eye level. "You take good care of Rachel, gargoyle," he warned.

Bis shifted his legs and ruffled his wings, the tufts on his ears growing darker in color. "Yes, sir," he answered with his gravely voice. "I will always look out for Miss Rachel."

I smiled at him. "I know you will, Bis. Jenks, we'll be fine. Just relax."

Jenks frowned. "Yeah, I'll relax when you're back here tomorrow afternoon in one piece. Be careful, Rache," he added, before flitting out the window to his stump in the garden.