dark, light | angeless [c]

♗ | pitiful

A/N: this may or may not be a super long chapter. also, i really need to find a new villain or make one up, because having maria as the villain in my fics has become such a cliche?? send help, honestly. also, in case you haven't figured it out or don't listen to the bands they're from, trevor is from the witch was right (combichrist as well, i believe?) and nicholas (and i will refer to him as nick from time to time, because repetition is so boring when variety is accessible..) is from get scared. i'm on a get scared kick, don't fucking judge me okay.. ALSO; FOR THIS, ANYTHING THAT ISN'T IN ITALICS IS A FLASHBACK....(YES, A FLASHBACK IN A FLASHBACK.)

...

"My life's so pitiful, give me one good reason why I shouldn't end it all.. If there's a reason then I haven't found it yet." Chris sang to himself, searching through the cupboards for something to make. He always tried to remember the likes and dislikes of his familiars, but it wasn't easy to find a compromise. "And I'll try every drug I find.. except maybe heroin and cyanide. But there's a reason I just can't afford it yet."

"I like it when you sing, Chris," Ricky noted from where he was sitting atop the refrigerator. He must have turned human once he'd gotten up there, because Chris hadn't noticed him at all.  "Is Nick coming home tonight?" He asked. Chris winced. He always asked that, but how could he tell Ricky that the answer was always going to be no?

"No.. Not tonight. But I'm sure he'll be back." The witch finally spoke up, trying to sound optimistic. Living a life leaning more toward the darker side of the spectrum wasn't easy. Maria and her angels had whittled the group down. A group of six had become a group of three. Sometimes, Chris could swear he could hear Nikki or Trevor's constant bitching, or Nicholas and his obnoxious laughter at mortal television stations.

Trevor had been the first to go. He didn't cry like Nikki had.. 

Nick had been the last one to go about a month previous. He wasn't dead, not to Chris's knowledge, but he certainly wasn't coming home.. Not if those angels had done anything to him. Mike tended to stay out for days to weeks at a time; Chris didn't blame him. 

Though he didn't quite approve of Mike's boyfriend, he didn't intervene. Ricky never left the witch's side, though. Partly because he worried that Chris would, in a state of confusion and rage, do something completely and utterly stupid. 

"What about Mike?" Ricky spoke up. 

Chris sighed. "He's with his boyfriend again, love. Macaroni or-" He paused. "I think we need to go shopping.. You still like macaroni, don't you-? I can run out and grab something else if you want," He offered. Ricky waved a hand. "Macaroni's just fine.." He said, grinning goofily. 

"You can borrow some of my books if you'd like," Trevor offered. "If it's any consolation, the first time I figured out that fire is my thing, I burnt my hands pretty awfully. Don't feel bad if you make things worse before you fix them. You fixed that possum on the first try," He noted. Chris chuckled. "I guess I did.." He said, running a hand through his hair. Trevor snickered. "You really ought to cut that fucking mop. You and Nicholas. You both fucking disgust me," He teased. Chris rolled his eyes. "Your hair was longer than this at one point, shut up.." He grinned. 

"Chris..?" Ricky spoke up softly, swinging his legs a bit. "Don't be sad.. They'll be back some day, won't they?" He said. Chris hated the fact that Ricky sometimes forgot that when people die, they don't come back.. but he couldn't explain it and hurt poor Ricky. "Maybe.." He said quietly.

"Hey, look at this," Nikki gushed, raising his hands up above his head. Rainy days meant hot weather in the Underworld, but luckily enough, the water wasn't boiling. Chris watched the rain curve around Nikki's hands and fall around him to the point of looking like an umbrella, not a drop actually getting on him. "Sick, huh?" He laughed before directing the water at Chris and splashing him with it. Chris laughed, flicking the water from his hands at Nikki. "You ass," He said, uncapping the water bottle he held and pouring some of it on Nikki, who just let it happen. It was hot out, after all. "Are there any beaches in Hell? Fuck, it's an oven out here," Nikki chuckled.

"Chris.." Ricky whined. "Please don't be sad. It doesn't do any good.." He said, frowning. Chris tried to take his mind off of things, focusing on what he'd been ding before; looking for a pot to make the macaroni in. "I'm not sad," He insisted softly, shaking his head. "I'm not. I'm not sad at all. Promise."

The smell of rain in the air was a rather nice change from the ashy smell of the Underworld. Nicholas liked useless trips to Earth, and Chris was always happy to tag along just for the fun of it. "Isn't this place cool? I love the cities." Nick said as they walked along. "Do you think people believe in shit..? Y'know, magic.. angels, demons, whatever.. Do humans believe in that?" He asked. Chris glanced at him. "I wouldn't know.. I was born in Hell. But weren't you and the guys human..? Wouldn't you know?" He inquired. Nicholas just shrugged. "None of us remember being.. normal.. The years before turning seventeen are all just sort of gone, you know? Is it different for you?" He asked. Chris frowned. "Yeah. I remember growing up.. It sucks that you guys don't.. Does it bother you..?" He asked. Nick smiled halfway. "Never."

"Are you okay?" Ricky asked worriedly. Chris ran his hands through his hair. A splitting headache had hit him like a brick to the point that his vision was blurred and his head was pounding. His knees buckled and he fell to the floor, Ricky hopping off of the fridge to help. "Talk to me. What's wrong? Please, say something. How can I help?" He asked worriedly.

Chris winced and grit his teeth, images of somewhere he'd been before flashing in his mind, as well as certain beings he tried to avoid, and finally, the one creature he hated most of all, a certain blonde angel. 

"Something's happening on Earth.. Can you see it too?" Chris said in a hushed tone. Ricky put a hand on Chris's shoulder, immediately squeaking and jolting backward, like he'd been electrocuted. "He's like them.. Like you, except.. more-"

"Much more powerful than any of us were. He's a target, for fuck's sake.." Chris muttered shakily, forcing himself back onto his feet. "And I'm not letting the blonde cunt ruin anymore lives. Get your shit together and go find Mike, please. We have somewhere to be." He muttered, cracking his knuckles. 

Ricky laughed, grinning like a maniac. "That's the Chris I know," He said softly, getting up and bolting off to carry out his orders. Chris cracked his knuckles and tilted his head back a bit, glancing at his reflection in the mirror in the hallway. "Pitiful." He muttered, smoothing his shirt out and clicking his tongue before walking off to his bedroom to get changed into the attire he'd avoided for quite some time. 

"When ever did I get so weak?" He muttered. "That's going to have to change right now."