Aeress

      She scooped another fork full of noodles into her mouth. There was an artificial flavor of shrimp and a little extra lime juice. It was delicious and also comforting. 

     She had just got done talking to Shaya on the phone. A guard had come in to bring it after she was done crying. He had probably heard her the entire time. How embarrassing. 

     Aeress barely kept it together in front of her best friend. The conversation was unusually brief, but she was glad to see her face. 

     She polished off the remaining noodles in the cup, sipping down the rest of the broth, and placed it on the dresser. 

      The room was cool. Apparently werewolves were reluctant to utilize the heater. Aeress got on her feet and was freezing. Thankfully her wet hair dried, though it was a dry mess. 

     She looked around the room. She could tell by the omnipresent scent that it was his bedroom. 

     There was a lack of presence. Intimacy. Nothing appeared to have a personal touch. It could of been anyone's room. It was similar to staying in a hotel room. 

     It had all the requirements of a basic bedroom: bed, dresser, connected closet, connected bathroom, desk and chair. That was it. 

     She eyed the clothes the guard left with her and decided to dress. She pulled on the bra and panties, but the shirt and pants were a smidge too tight. Why was it hard to acknowledge the presence of her stomach? And the fact that her boobs were larger than a b cup. 

     Wearing her old clothes was not an option. 

      She decided to go into the closet. Of course it had little choice but black. Aeress was confused. He literally possessed no other color. Why did he hate all colors? 

     Thinking of Warrick gave her a headache. She knew she was pissed at him and feared it would only get worse with him. Aeress expressed everything, while he expressed nothing. How was she ever going to adjust to that? 

     Because that was what he was telling her. She would have to adjust. She would have to learn to live with werewolves until her demon was under control. 

     Aeress had to admit she was a little terrified to leave the room. The creature could come back, and she didn't want to kill anyone else. 

     She searched for a t-shirt and found a black one of course. It was form-fitting on her boobs. Thank god! Next was pants. She searched and searched. All dress pants! Aeress was happy to come across a pair of shorts. They were adjustable, so she pulled them in some.

     She was satisfied when she left the closet and plopped herself on the bed. It sunk and her weight, conforming to her curves. 

     Her eyes blinked closed after a few minutes... 

     "Ma'am?" 

     Aeress shot up like a bullet, jumping out of her skin ten feet into the air. So violent she awoke that the man stumbled back in surprise. 

     Her eyes were wide as she clung onto her shirt, fearing her heart would somehow escape from her chest. "Oh my lord jesus and all good things above, don't do that!" She fought to steady her breathing. 

     The man was tall and thin with a heavy dark brow and light blue eyes. He couldn't tremble with more force if he tried. "I am so sorry," his voice was thick an accent, "are you well?" He was hesitant to approach. "I did not mean to frighten you." 

     She took in his dark, formal clothing. "Who are you?" 

     "I am Mikya." He opened the door behind him wider. "I am Premier's personal assistant with most things. I... Am new. The other one retired, well he didn't really retire-" 

     She straightened herself. "What happened to him? Is he okay?" 

     He bit his lip nervously. This guy had a bad anxiety problem. "I'm not sure what I can reveal. He died. During the attack. I'm sorry, ma'am." His eyes travelled back up to her and she didn't comprehend the reverence there. "A tragedy. But more would have perished had you not took action. I would like to personally give my deepest gratitude. My cousin, she would have died had it not been for you." 

     Aeress blinked a few more times. She couldn't address that just yet. "Is there something you needed?" 

     He bowed his head. "Premier requests your presence." 

     Aeress frowned. "Requests?" 

      "Most likely to address something urgent, Ma'am." 

     Aeress huffed out a breath. She was already annoyed. "He couldn't have gotten me himself?" She got out of bed and approached Mikya. 

     Mikya was obviously confused. She noticed he refused to make eye contact. "Premier would not bother himself with such trivial tasks. He has a far more integral job to accomplish." 

     "Why are you looking at the ground?" Aeress demanded when she came to his side. 

     He inhaled deeply. "You are our deity. Oh, I wasn't supposed to say that. Premier said it would disturb you." 

     Aeress was uncomfortable at being regarded to as a deity. "It does. Just call me Aeress. Please." 

     His eyes widened though his nodded accordingly. "As you wish... Will you see Premier?" 

     She sighed and gestured to the hallway. "Lead the way, Mikya." 

     He bowed yet again. "Of course." 

     So they walked. He was so quiet that she hardly noticed his presence. 

     "Were a lot of people hurt?" she spoke up quietly. She became nervous as they passed several armed guards. And everytime they bent their heads in submission as they walked by. 

     "We lost five, they lost more." He answered shortly. "Jonah will never succeed." 

     Her blood froze at the familiar name. "Who is Jonah?" She kept close to the wall as they moved, fearing she would become faint from just the name alone. 

     His face wilted. But then twisted with disgust. "A vile man. A long time ago there was a different Premier. A cruel woman. There were two sons." 

     Aeress knew exactly where this was going. "Let me guess. They competed for this position. Warrick won-obviously-and Jonah called bullshit?" 

     His lips upturned. "In a sense. As most competitors do, they entered a death match. Jonah was losing but before Premier could deliver the death blow, Jonah escaped and vowed to claim victory. He took many followers with him." 

     Aeress thought of the man who killed her. He looked nothing like Warrick. He had dark brown hair and ugly yellow eyes. He had no soul, no fire. In a way, i was much worse than the wintry of Warrick's gaze. "Talk about a dysfunctional family." 

     They arrived at a door. "I don't think I should have revealed that."

     Aeress shrugged. "Don't worry about it." 

     Mikya went to knock on the door. Aeress rolled her eyes at this and popped the door open herself. 

     "Thanks, Mikya," she said closing the door behind her. 

     She turned to see the frustratingly handsome man seated at a humongous desk. The laptop before him gave a blue tint to his concentrated face. He said nothing, typing away at whatever he was determined to complete. Probably Candy Crush. 

     Aeress was ready to snap when he didn't acknowledge her. So she flopped down in the seat in front of the desk. She would wait all day apparently. 

     "We are leaving tomorrow morning." 

     She looked up, yet to meet his gaze. "Okay, I'm great, thanks for asking!" she snapped. "Now where is it that you think we are leaving to?" 

     His jaw tightened. "We can't stay here any longer. The security here is not strong enough. The Alaskan location would better suit us." 

     Was he out of his mind!? "I'm not comfortable with you telling me randomly that I am moving across the country. I'm not ready-" 

     "This is for the best." That's it? Nothing else. 

     Aeress felt like she was going insane. "We can't just leave. This is a big commitment. Shouldn't we wait. Am I okay to travel?" 

     He kept on typing. 

     "So that's it? I don't even get a say? Jesus, will you look at me for like a quarter of a second!?" She demanded, slamming his laptop closed. 

     He had his hands folded in front of him in a flash. His cold eyes looked into hers. "What else is there to discuss?" Oh, he was a brat!

     She backed up. "What's wrong with you?" 

     He sighed. "You fight every goddamn word I speak." 

     Aeress slapped her forehead. "You're an asshole-you know that?-even after I told you that you were being an asshole. When someone tells you you're being an asshole, that means 'stop being an asshole!'" Okay, so she was shouting. 

     He came to a stand, then looking down on her. "You insult me so easily, it is amazing, truly, how ignorant people can be." She was up against the wall in less time that it took to blink. "I am trying to help you survive. Why can't you understand that?"  He didn't once cause her pain, but he was obviously frustrated. She hated how his touch left her breathless.

     Aeress wanted to be frightened. Maybe it would knock some sense into her. "Warrick, I have been through a lot of shit, including but not limited to death and demon possession. I need somebody, and unfortunately it turns out that you," she pushed him, "are the only one available. So fine, let's go to Alaska. I don't know why you invited me for a talk. I have no fucking say in anything, right?" She didn't bother to look at him and stormed out. 

Black Lives Matter.