Across the Divide and Through Valhalla

A Night Out

Chapter 44

That Saturday night found the three men plus Jerry in the living room waiting for the women. They had each donned their leathers, or in Caius' case, his furs, and feathers. It was a strange feeling after not having worn them for so long. Genesis was particularly happy to be back in his duster. Sephiroth had initially expressed his worry, but they all gave in when Kaylan also assured them that not only would it be acceptable, but it would be for the best. They didn't have time to find other suitable costumes, and they would stand out more if they went without one. They all three hoped the women were correct.

All of those worries were long gone when the two women joined them. Kaylan came out first in a lacy green dress and brown leggings. She had also put on longer ears and had on a set of diaphanous wings. With her height, she made an adorable pixie.

Genesis barely noticed the girl, however. His gaze was immediately drawn to Sherry. She was wearing a form-fitting red outfit that was covered with a red corset. He immediately recognized what she was supposed to be, even if it was cloth and not leather. His gaze traveled from her braid to her boots and back up to her eyes. When he caught her gaze, she was blushing, but she grinned at him.

Genesis smirked at the look. "It's not leather."

Sherry chuckled. "Leather gets hot and sweaty. Besides, I had most of this on hand already. I just had to make a few adjustments. I didn't have time to go all out. You get the point, though."

He walked around her once before he stopped in front of her and lifted a brow. "Yes. And you intend to go out wearing this?"

Sherry snorted. "I am a grown woman. Don't even get me started on that whole debate. Tonight is supposed to be fun, and that is what I plan on it being." She paused and stepped forward. Genesis hadn't noticed the small red rod she had around her wrist until she brought it up and tapped his chin with it. "Just remember not to use your magic on me tonight." She gave him a wink and turned to see the others had all been watching with various degrees of interest. Kaylan was grinning at her.

Sherry didn't even want to know what that was about, so she grabbed the keys. "Let's go before it gets too late."

Luckily, Kaylan and Jerry had been able to convince his cousin that the three men were old enough, but they gave a concocted story about an accident that caused them all to lose a bunch of stuff, including their IDs. Once the man saw them, it was even easier. None of them looked like they were under 21, especially since they were all over six feet tall. They managed to make it inside with just an autograph and a smile. The man was still grinning as they headed to find a place at the bar.

Sherry wasn't surprised to see the crowd part around them. The three men were already drawing interested gazes. She just hoped that if they decided they liked someone, they would at least let her know before they disappeared. She shuddered when she thought about the mess that could be. She also studiously ignored the pang in her chest when she imagined Genesis being the one to leave.

Once they found a table near the bar, the girls immediately went to dance. That left the four men watching from the sidelines. There were several minutes of silence before their drinks arrived, and Genesis finally turned to Jerry. "Does watching this not bother you?"

Jerry sighed and took a long gulp. He gestured to where the two women were dancing with each other and trying to keep space between themselves and some of the more aggressive men on the dance floor. "A little. But we've had it out before. She can handle herself, and I trust her." He turned to Genesis with a smile that was half grimace. "I was told that it was my choice. I could go dance with them and take care of it myself, or I could shut up and let her have fun. I don't dance."

Genesis did not look pleased with his answer, but Sephiroth chuckled. "They seem to have it under control. We are not far if it gets worse."

At that point, the conversation turned to other things. Mostly questions about the holiday and the outlandish costumes. The two women came to sit occasionally, but not for long. Unfortunately, neither of them could convince any of the men to join them.

It could have been because they never left the table, or because they were all together, but the three men were never bothered. That didn't mean they didn't notice people looking their way, both men and women. They only time someone approached them was when the manager came over with a smile to ask them to sign up for the costume contest. He grinned when they all signed their real names before he waved and walked away.

It wasn't long after that when things went to hell. Genesis was watching the girls dance again, but he jumped up when he saw a man grab Sherry and start to drag her off the dance floor. She managed to yank her hand from his grasp, but he immediately turned and backhanded her hard enough to knock her off her feet. By that point, the crowd had jumped back, and a circle had formed around them all. Kaylan was screaming at the man as he grabbed Sherry again. She still seemed to be dazed, as she wasn't fighting back, but she did hold up a hand to stop Kaylan from lashing out.

Genesis already had a fireball in hand and glared over at Sephiroth when he shoved the hand down. "Not in here."

Genesis had a quick retort that vanished as Sephiroth had already turned away and toward to dance floor. Caius was right behind him. The guardian turned to him. "Are you coming?"

By the time the three men made it to the dance floor, the bouncers already had the stranger held with his arms behind his back. That didn't keep him from yelling. Kaylan had an arm wrapped around Sherry's shoulder, and the older woman was studiously ignoring the vile insults being thrown her way. Genesis immediately went to her side, and Kaylan allowed him to take her and lift her chin. He could tell she was trying not to cry.

He hadn't realized Sephiroth and Caius had stepped in front of them until the insults the other man was yelling started to change. Genesis looked up with fire in his eyes as he realized they were all aimed at Sherry.

"God Sherry, I knew you were a whore, but three at once? When did you get into fuckbois anyway?"

Genesis pushed his way past the other two, fully intending to knock the man's teeth out, but he was stopped when Sherry grabbed his arm. He glared back at her. She shook her head, and he doubted anyone but himself, and Sephiroth heard her. "He's not worth it. Let's leave."

Genesis clenched his jaw but didn't move. Sherry looked past him to the other two with a pleading look in her eyes. "It would cause trouble if we stay. It would be best to just leave and let the club handle him. Please?"

Genesis still looked like he wanted to kill the man, but Sephiroth clapped him on the shoulder in a way that let him know they needed to follow her advice. "Let's go."

None of them moved until Genesis let out a growl and glared at the man before he turned to leave. He still had his arm around Sherry's shoulder as they walked out. They had not made it far when they heard a commotion behind them. They all turned to see the man being tackled to the floor by two bouncers. The one that was pushing his face down tsked at him. "Man, and they were gonna let you off. How stupid can you get? Can't you tell they'd eat your lunch?"

The other bouncer looked up at the group as they hauled the man to his feet. "We got this. You guys go ahead. Thanks for not starting shit here."

Sephiroth gave the man a nod and started to turn, but they were all shocked when Kaylan stormed around them and to where the bouncers still had the man pinned. Her eyes flashed as she tossed the contents of her drink with an uncanny aim, right into the crotch of the man's pants. As the creamy concoction started to run down his legs, she looked up with an evil grin. "She was always too good for you. Next time stay in the hole you crawled out of."

No one had the presence of mind to say anything as the girl turned on her heel and walked toward the exit. The rest of the group followed quickly. Most of them wearing bemused expressions. This night did not turn out at all like they had expected.