You Are So Not a Fallen Angel

Chapter 15

We threaded our way through the dancers to the middle of the floor. Everyone seemed to have paired-up, and no-one was doing the usual ‘club dancing’, i.e. grinding their hips and flapping their arms about whilst trying not to tread on people’s feet. Instead, all the couples seemed to be performing the same dance, following the same set of steps, twisting and turning around each other without missing a beat. Creepily, none of them missed a single beat, or put a foot wrong. Despite the fact the room was packed, with barely room to move, there was not a single incident, not a crushed foot, not a knocked elbow, nothing.
“I’m not sure about this,” I said as Ivan took my hands.
“It’ll be fine,” he said, placing one of my hands on his shoulder and placing his on my waist, as if we were about to launch into a waltz, instead of a crazed dance I knew not the steps of and couldn’t make out the music, just the beat.
“It won’t,” I said, shaking my head. I tried to step back, to break out of Ivan’s grasp, but he held tight.
“I’ve done this before. Just listen to the music and you’ll know what to do.” He stepped forwards, forcing me to step back. “There you go, you just mastered the first step.”
He stepped back this time, pulling me with him. Then, without warning, he swung around. I followed, and to my great surprise, I didn’t stumble or trip over my feet. There was a split second pause then Ivan led me off again.
“See, I told you it would be easy. Just follow the music.”
“Easy to say,” I mumbled. “I can’t even hear the bloody music.” But I didn’t have time for further recriminations, as Ivan sent me off in a twirl. I spun away from him, kicked out with my left leg, shimmied close again.
The dance picked up speed and Ivan and I continued to dance without mishap. It was more than just without mishap though. For the first time in my life, I was dancing well. My mother had packed me off to take dance lessons when I was seven, but try as I might, I couldn’t get the hang of anything. I had plodded about, falling over my own feet, never able to sense the rhythm the dance teacher was bleating about. Now however, I was spinning and turning like a pro. Tomorrow, I would wonder how this had come about, but right now, I was just going to enjoy it.
I don’t know how long we glided about the dance floor. When the music stopped then changed, and we stumbled to a halt, clumsy and awkward again, it felt like it had only been a few minutes, but my feet were aching as if I had been standing up for hours.
“I think I need another drink,” I yelled in his ear. Around us, the couple were breaking up, going back to their friends, back to grinding their hips in time to the music again.
“Good idea,” We fought our way to the edge of the room again.
“There’s my friend,” Ivan hurried over to one of the tables, where a girl was sitting, surveying the dancers with a bored expression on her face. She looked up as we sat down.
“Py, this is Eliza. Eliza, this is Py. She’s a friend of mine.”
“Hello Eliza.” Py’s eyes flicked to my face, my neck, my hands. Her gaze was barely upon me for more than a few seconds, but I felt as if she already learnt all she needed to know. I stared right back. Py’s skin was dark, as were her eyes, like two black holes in her face. Her long black hair was twisted up into a pile on her head, threaded through with thin gold chains. More gold chains hung around her neck and wrists. She was wearing what looked like a ball gown with splits up the side, her long legs sticking out from the skirt. Her ankles were also wrapped in gold chains, and her feet were bare.   
“I’ll go get another round.” Ivan jumped up. “The usual, Py?”
“Of course,” she purred. There was no other word for the sound that came out of her throat, a low rumble. I watched Ivan depart, wondering if he knew his friend was not mortal. She couldn’t be. She didn’t have pointy teeth and claws like Salaine, but there was no mistaking her for human.
“Enjoying yourself, Eliza?”
“Very much.” I kept my voice level and stared straight into her eyes as I spoke, showing I was not going to be intimidated.
“I saw you out there, with dear Ivan. You looked so sweet together. Is this the first time you have come to Nahaven?”
I nodded.
“What about you?” I realised as I spoke I no longer had to shout to be heard. Py’s voice came to me loud and clear. “Do you come here often?”
“All the time.” She smiled at me, and she went from gorgeous to breath-takingly beautiful. Yet there was something else behind the smile, something unsettling. Her fingers brushed against mine, and I pulled my hand back in surprise.
“Relax. I mean you no harm. You’re human, I see, though not entirely innocent. That’s very interesting.” She reached over and took my hand. She closed her eyes and her lips tightened. Before she could tell what was wrong, Ivan returned. Py dropped my hand as if it had burnt her, and turned to dazzle Ivan.
“Ivan, you’re brilliant.” She took the drink he offered and took a sip. I followed suite with my own drink. It was the same as before.
“Do you two fancy going somewhere more private?” She laughed shrilly. “Don’t look so alarmed, Ivan. I’m just suggesting we go somewhere more intimate. Away from all this noise.”
She took my hand and pulled to my feet.
“Come on, Eliza, let’s get away from these awful crowds.” She flashed her dazzling smile at me again, and I found myself following. Ivan leapt up and followed us. Py led me around the side of the room, nodding at Salaine, who was busily charming a drunken young woman who was leaning over the bar, batting her eyelashes at him. We turned right after the bar, where Py opened a door beyond with was a long staircase. I blinked in the sudden brightness. Like the corridor downstairs, there were no frills here. No fancy paintwork, no thick carpet, no spot lighting.
“It gets better,” Py said, as if reading my thoughts. We climbed the stairs in silence. I was beginning to wonder if she was going to take me up to the roof and push me off, or something equally unfortunate. I wondered why I wasn’t more scared. Under normal circumstances, I would have at least been cautious about going off with a complete stranger, especially one who wasn’t even human. But my definition of normal had been thrown off by my encounter by Lorris. I remembered him telling to be careful, but his words seemed distant and fuzzy to my confused brain. And hadn’t he abandoned me, left in my own to fend for myself? Of course, I was able to take care of myself, and if I needed reinforcements, Ivan was right behind me.
The stairs ended in a door. Standing by the door was a bouncer. He was not on the same scale as Gandhy, but he was still on the large side. He gave me a long look before switching to Py. Py nodded shorted, as if to confirm I was with her. The bouncer opened the door and ushered us inside.
The room beyond looked like it might have been a VIP lounge. It was much smaller than the one downstairs, and the décor was even more luscious. Lots of red tints and velvet. There were maybe fifty people, dotted about the room in small groups, seating or reclining on the many sofas and armchairs that lined the walls and alcoves. The spot lights were gone, replaced by low white lights. There was music, but it was much quieter than below. This was a place for talk and discussion.
“This is much better,” Py announced, leading us to a sofa. She settled herself on the red velvet couch, sitting on it like a queen on a throne, and clicked her fingers. Immediately, a waiter appeared at her shoulder. “Three of the usual,” she demanded. I perched opposite her, feeling apprehensive. Ivan slide in next to me, and his fingers brushed mine, a silent gesture of support. 
“So what brings you to Nahaven?” she asked me. Her eyes were boring into me, as if she wanted to drill into my head and extract every last secret.
“I came with a friend.” The waiter came gliding back, bearing a tray loaded with three glasses. He handed me one, and I eyed it. The liquid inside was thick and oily, blood red in colour. I sniffed it. It didn’t smell suspicious, but neither did it smell like anything I had ever tasted before.
“It’s quite safe. You won’t suffer any adverse effects.”
I took a small sip and put it aside. I was fuzzy and detached enough as it was. I wanted to keep some semblance of wit.
“Where is your friend?” Py asked next.
“Lost in the crowd. He’ll find me soon enough.”
“If they let him in. Not everyone can just waltz in here, you know.”
“Well, I’ll go down and met him.” I stared levelly at her. The message was clear. Someone would miss me, should anything happen. 
“You’re right to be careful.”
“I don’t know what you mean.”
She leant over and took my hands again. I let her hold them for two seconds before I pulled them away.
“And what is your friend’s name?”
“I don’t think you need to know that.” I continued to stare straight into her eyes, determined not to the one who looked away first. She held my gaze for five seconds before moving it to a spot across the room.
“You have spirit. So much spirit. I’ve always admired that in mortals, your spirit.” I glanced as Ivan, to see what he made of her remark, but he was staring at a group of women of the other die of the room. “You are so tiny, so fragile. You are nothing, just specks in the grand scheme of things. Your lives last less than a blink, and yet you burn so bright. And you do not fear this. You stare at the face of destiny and you never back down.”
“Why are we here? I’m betting you didn’t bring me up here just to talk riddles about destiny and the place humans hold in the world.”
 She laughed again, and it rung hollowly in my ears. It sounded forced and a little unnatural. I stared at her face, and it was as if I was seeing mask that was slowly peeling away, revealing the ugliness beneath.
“Dance with me.” She stuck out a hand. I stared at it.
“Are you kidding?”
“I never “kid”. Dance with me, Eliza, and you can go on your way.”
I took her hand and followed her to the centre of the room. I glanced around, but no paid us any attention as Py put her hand on my waist. I put my hand on her shoulder, gripped the other one and we began to shuffle about. There was no sudden burst of grace and knowledge this time. I stayed just as inept as always.
“I saw you dancing down there. You were so beautiful. I was stunned.”
“This isn’t going to one of those dances, the ones with fairies, where you think you’ve danced for one night, when in fact it’s been a hundred years.”
“Maybe next time.” She pulled me close so our bodies were touching, her hand sliding down my back. “Am I making you uncomfortable?” she shook her head. “Mortals are so sweet, so repressed. So prudish. I could show you things you could never imagine, Eliza.”
 “Maybe next time.” I moved her hand to my waist again and stepped back. “Now tell what you want.”
She laughed and spun me around, and as I came closer again, she leant closer and whispered in my ear.
“Has he found it yet?”
“Has who found what?” I said, feigning ignorance, but a cold chill had just gone down my spine. I had no doubt she was talking about Feather Boy. This sounded like it concerned the real reason he was here on Earth, the top secret mission he refused to talk to me about.
“What he is looking for. The tall, dark beautiful one who has stolen your heart. Don’t try to deny it. His smell is all over you, and your feelings for him are as clear as day.” She squeezed my fingers. “Touch is everything, pretty one. So tell me, has he found it yet?”
“What business is it of yours?” I tried to break her hold, but she held on hard, her nails biting into my skin as I fought.
“Tell me,” she hissed, her grip tightening.
“Let me go.” When she did not oblige, I raised my shoe and slammed it down on her foot. Letting out a yowl of pain, she jumped back and I retreated to the other side of the room. She hissed like a cat, glaring daggers at me, but she didn’t try to come close again.
I turned around and walked to the door. As I reached it, I glanced over my shoulder at her. She had returned to the sofa and was curled up close to Ivan, stroking his hair. She didn’t look my way. I yanked the door open, startling the man on the other side and ran down the stairs, almost falling over on the last step. I stumbled, staggered forwards and cannoned into someone.
“Eliza!” Lorris grabbed me.
“Where the hell have you been?” I punched him in the arm.
 “Are you alright?” He held me at arm’s length and looked me up and down, as if checking for injury.
“No thanks to you.” I smoothed down my dress. “Can we go?”
“Okay.” He fell in to next as I crossed the now almost deserted dance floor. “But where have you been? I’m been looking for you everywhere.”
“I was upstairs.” We had reached the door, and Lorris paused.
“Upstairs?”
“Yes, upstairs. In the other room.”
“What other room?”
“The one that is upstairs. The one that is beyond that door.” I gestured over my shoulder. “Are you being dense on purpose?”
“You went to the other room?” In his voice were equal parts of amazement and disbelief. “But that place doesn’t exist.”
“It most certainly does.” I frowned. “I was there not five minutes ago.” Had I imagined the whole thing?
“Who did you go with?”
“Someone I know and a friend of his.” I didn’t say what I suspected about Py’s nature. “You ditched me,” I pointed out, figuring guilt would be enough of a distraction. Lorris didn’t seem very happy at what I had done.
“I saw someone I had to talk to, and lost you in the crowd. I’m sorry. I should have been there.” He rubbed my arm. “I shouldn’t have left you alone in there.”
We went down the front stairs and into the entrance hall. At the bottom, I turned to go out through the service corridor but Lorris caught my arm.
“We can go out through the front this time. Are you sure you went to another room?”
“What’s the problem here? What is it about that room that has got your knickers in a twist?”
Lorris ran his fingers through his hair, a sheepish look on his face.
“It’s just that...” he broke off. I raised an eyebrow at him. “That room isn’t supposed to exist.”
“What?”
“I mean, I always thought the fabled ‘upper room’ of Nahaven was a myth. I’ve never seen it, and I’ve been coming here for years. And I’ve never met anyone who’s been inside. Not even the people who work there.” 
“Maybe I move in higher circles than you do.”
He opened his mouth to say more, but then closed it and shook his head.
“I’m sorry.” He took my hand and pressed it to his heart. “I’m sorry I abandoned you. I wanted to show you an amazing time and I failed dismally. Forgive me, please.”
He dropped a kiss on my knuckles.
“Stop being ridiculous,” I scolded, but I smiled at him. “Stupid angel.”
“Does that mean I’m forgiven?”
“I suppose so.”
“Next time we’ll go somewhere extraordinary. We’ll go for dinner in Paris and walk along the banks of the Seine in the moonlight.”    
“That sounds nice.”
He slipped his hand into mine and we left the club. Outside, the first flushes of dawn were beginning to appear. I yawned. It had been a strange night.
“Let’s go home,” Lorris said, and the burst of light flashed before my eyes. In no more than a blink, we were back in my bedroom.
“My lady, this is where I leave you,” he bowed and moved towards the window.
“Wait.” He stopped and turned to face me. “Stay for a while.”
“I’m not sure that’s a good idea,” he said. I kicked off my shoes and stepped towards him. I ran my hands over his chest, fiddling with the top button of his shirt.
“Here we are, all alone in my room. Why does the night have to end here?” I undid the first button and moved on to the next.
“Eliza.”
“Wouldn’t it be a nice way to finish off the evening?” The second button wielded and my fingers found the third one.
“Eliza!” Lorris leapt backwards. “What are you doing?”
“Well, don’t you want to?”
“What has gotten into you?”
“Nothing, I just think the moment is right.”
Lorris took another step back, ending up against the wall.
“Did you drink anything tonight? At the club.”
“I might.” I moved towards him and he sidestepped. “Does it matter?”
“Yes. The drinks there can have funny... effects on mortals. This being one of them.”
I grabbed him and pulled him over to my bed.
“So what?”
“You’re not thinking rationally!” he snapped, disentangling himself and retreating to the other side of the room. “If we do this now, you’ll wake up tomorrow and regret it.”
“I won’t. Come on Lorris, don’t be so stuffy.”
“You will. I’m not saying it won’t happen, but not tonight. Have a cold shower, go to bed and think about it again tomorrow.”    
“You are such a spoilsport.” I sat up, crossed my arms and pouted.
“I can live with that. Go and have your shower.”
Ten minutes under a cold jet did much to calm my arduous desires, and sooth the fire burning within. Fifteen minutes was enough for me to be bright red and cringing in embarrassment. I turned the water off after seventeen minutes, wondering what the hell had gotten into me. The most plausible solution was that there had been something in the drink Py gave me, and it said a lot about the current state of my life that the idea a supernatural being had slipped something onto my drink was considered plausible.
I pulled on my more modest and least flattering pyjamas and slunk back to my room, hoping Angel Boy would have vanished into the night. He had not.
I tried not to look at him as I clambered into bed and pulled the sheet all the way up to my chin.
“Feeling better?” he sat on the end of the bed.
“You make it sound like I was ill.”
He said nothing, just grinned and leant in for a quick kiss.
“Goodnight, Eliza.”