Toying with Destiny

 Authors note:  if you feel like you've missed something, check out the addition to the end of part two before reading.

Chapter two:  continued

While showering I thought about how quickly this place had started to feel like home.  Even the layout suited me.  The large front room with it's used , but comfortable, furnishings had become my favorite room.  My bathroom was to the left of the enterance and contained both a shower and a large tub.  My bedroom was to the right, and while it was small, I didn't mind.  Bedrooms were for sleeping, not recreation, especially during my current dry spell.  My kitchen was opposite the front door, and was the least used room in the house.  I couldn't cook to save my life, so Mr. Hinky ate more meals there than I did.  The door past my bedroom led to the last room.  I used this room to store my books, spell casting paraphernalia and my weapons.  While not my favorite room, it was by far the most important.

Turning off the water, I stepped out and began to dry off.  My mind already working on the questions that I intended to ask the Djinn when we called it.  The "we" referred to myself and the only being I could rely on to call and control a Djinn.  Notice that I didn't use the word trust.  Adairis and I had made a deal two years ago, and I knew that he had to honor the terms of our agreement.  Still, trusting a demon under any circumstances would be a very dangerous mistake.

Once my hair was dry, I braided it.  The braid hung well past the middle of my back, reminding me that it was time to get it cut again.  Pulling on jeans and my "Spike rules" t-shirt, I added black  boots and a belt.  The belt was necessary, since I didn't go anywhere without strapping on my knife.  The Spike shirt was just because I liked "Buffy the vampire slayer" and I loved Spike.  Not that Angel wasn't eye candy as well, but I'd always had a thing for bad boys.

Returning to the front room, I called out to Adairis.  Since we'd made our bargain, I didn't have to perform a ritual to get his attention.  Seconds later, he appeard and I felt my heart start to race.  It wasn't racing out of fear, it was his appearance that made it speed up.  Dressed in leather pants that clung to him like saran wrap, with his dark hair curling to his shoulders and his lips curved in a sensuous smile, he looked good enough to make a nun renounce her vows.

Crossing his muscular arms, he asked, "How may I assist you?"

"I need you to summon a Djinn, let me question him, and then send him back to Kaf.  I also want you to put a barrier around the room so that I can stand outside without feeling the pull of your magic."

"Where and when?"  Adairis only became expasive when he was after something, so I preffered it when he was a demon of few words.

"Second door on your right.  You can start as soon as the barrier is up, and call me once he's here."  I watched him move to the door and enter the room, thankful that he wasn't wasting any time.  This was the first time I'd called him and he was only obliged to help for the next 24 hrs..  I planned to make good use of the time, with only two calls left in our deal, I couldn't afford to waste a second. 

I knew the barrier was going up when I felt the hair on my stand at attention.  Even such a simple spell fed the need, thank god it was over so quickly.  Alaistair called out to me a few minutes later, and I headed for the back room.  I wasn't sure exactly what to expect but, oddly enough, my nerves were calm.

I had painted a red pentagram on the floor right after I moved in, after all, you never knew when you might need one.  Adairis had outlined it with salt and placed candles at the five points of the star.  The walls were plain and all my supplies were stored in the walk in closet, so my eyes were drawn immediately to the man in the middle of the pentagram.  I had thought that Adairis was the most  attracive creature I'd ever see, but I'd been wrong.  Tall and muscular, with light blonde hair and violet eyes, he was the light to Adairis's darkness.  I didn't have to remind myself that he wasn't human, because light blue wings sprouted from his back.  The feathers on his wings seemed to shimmer with a ligh of their own.  They stopped at the edge of the pentagram, but it was obvious that their span would be a good deal greater if they were stretched out.