“So let me get this straight,” Rhenakos said as he sat down across from Lewis and Simone. Now that the whole event that would forever be known as “The Great Marriage Disaster” was over, the assassin and his…woman moved on to the actual task they needed to complete.

“You want me to track down a fae, without a name?” he asked. The hunter sighed as he sat back in his chair, kicking his legs up on the table. “Can’t do it. And besides, I wouldn’t. You hate me, so why would I bother helping? He smirked. “Furthermore…” He glanced at Simone. She reeked of the runt. “I don’t know what you see in that psychotic bastard.” The irony was practically lost on Rhenakos. “I bet there’s a whole ass story behind that, and I’d love to hear it.”

Lewis glared at the man across from him. “You still owe me fo-”

Rhenakos clapped his hands together. “I owe you nothing, Lewis. We settled our debt fair and square.” He smirked. “And I want nothing to do with you. It’s bad for my wife’s health.”

Raile cleared his throat from the counter at the back of the store. “May I remind you that Lewis just helped us with getting Leilah back?”

Rhenakos leaned back in his chair, taking the front two legs off the ground. “Your point?”

“Last I checked, you work for me. And I owe Lewis a favor…” Raile stated.

“Then fire me,” Rhenakos shot back.

Lewis scoffed, “So you’re telling me you can’t do it?” The assassin smirked. “I guess that means you really are useless…” He stood up. “Simone. Let’s go find someone who can help. Obviously this hunter is useless at his job.” They started to walk out.

The hunter sighed. “Your goading doesn’t work on me, Lewis…” He stood up. “But fine…I’ll help. Not for you, though.” He looked at Simone with a serious look on his face. “My eye practically catches fire every time I look at you…” To anyone else, this may have sounded like a pitiful flirt, but to those in the room who knew Rhenakos, it meant that the magic he was sensing was causing physical pain.

“Give me the info we have…”

All little Simone knew was that the fey lord was after her for some reason that Lewis wouldn't completely disclose to her. Once everything was settled with the djinn and her mishap they were scheduled to ask Rhenakos to help them. However, as Simone was starting to find out it might not be as easy as once thought. She frowned a bit towards the demon hunter and even added a pout when he insulted Lewis.

The goading and the bitching was starting to agitate the older Simone who was definitely growing impatient with her demise so close at hand. Younger Simone stood up with Lewis and bowed to the others, "Thank you for listening at least." She didn't understand Rhenakos's words when he finally stopped them. "What do you mean?" She turned and looked at the demon hunter.

To save her own skin and the skin of every damn pregnant woman in the building her eyes went dead and she held a colder aura to her. The way she held herself changed and she was glaring towards Rhenakos. "You could have been less stubborn in the beginning and not be a dick. This," Simone motioned to Lewis, "is bad for your wife?" There was a scoff. This Simone didn't seem overly worried about who helped her die.

"Furthermore, your tactfulness is lacking. What my younger self loves or who she loves is not a concern of yours. It won't matter anyways since nothing fruitful will ever come from it. It's more of a problem than anything else. To add onto that I could rebuttal how the hell Osiria deals with your sorry ass all the time. You aren't exactly a first place prize for the granddaughter of a goddess." Her eyes narrowed in and she waved her eyes.

"I digress though, all I want is to die. To die I need the fey lord dead and if you can find him I really don't care the cost of it. I've suffered far too long to care how it happens even if I have to kill to get my way. I will be dead and soon enough."

She crossed her arms as she shocked the women in the room. Even Osiria had her mouth open, "You don't want to stay with Lewis?" She had fought so hard to get back to Rhenakos and Simone was just throwing it away.

"I'm tired and I'm broken. There's no amount of fancy potions, spells, or bandages that can fix me. I've been through hell and quite frankly I'm fucking tired of looking at my own face. Falling in love with Lewis wasn't my idea and if I had my way it wouldn't be a possibility but here I fucking am and here are my feelings. They don't matter. I've been married and in love hundreds of times. I've been a mother. I've watched it all burn to the ground, my children killed and parted out to gods know what, I've been raped, I've been abused, I've been tortured, and the list goes on and on. Nothing Lewis can do will make that better or make me feel completed. I want to die and get this over with." The coldness in her voice was far different from the Simone they knew.

Kalina was staring at her and shook her head, "Tell us what you know Simone. We'll all help you get put to rest." Even she could feel the curse's magic off of Simone and it raised bumps on her skin at times. "The other Simone isn't aware?"

"No, if she finds out she'll become dangerous and Lewis will have to kill her again. We're trying to avoid that so don't do the dipshit thing and mention it to her. She's already been killed by Angela for it." Simone had a sharp tongue. She calmed herself and recounted everything she knew about the fey lord.

"Makes sense why you wouldn't know his actual name," Leilah spoke up as she brought everyone some coffee. "Fey don't give out their real names. To know a true name is dangerous and it can be used against you. It's why Simone's curse is so strong. Simone, when were you born?" That would give them a starting point. "The library might be of use if we can look at maps."

Simone thought about it and sighed, "I keep hearing about a place called Adeluna. It didn't exist when I was a girl. We also know I was trapped in a lake for three hundred years or so and only emerged from it six years ago."

Lewis cleared his throat to interject his own answer. He had seen a surprising amount of pertinent information while in Simone’s mindscape.

“Auclair Castle,” he said. “It was a medium sized castle…nothing as ornate as the main city, but big enough. Even with the passing of all this time, I can probably recognize most of the landscape. I’ve seen it.” He looked at Simone. “You showed it to me, whether or not you remember. It’s at least a starting point. A lake, a castle, and the proximity to Adeluna.” He looked to Raile.

“Could you spare some time to help search the Adeluna records for it? I’m sure you have some kind of pull there with your connections,” Lewis asked nicely, surprising almost everyone in the room. “In the meantime, Rhenakos, Simone, and I can search the outskirts for any clues. Maybe even ask around.”

Rhenakos nodded in agreement. “That sounds like a solid start. This curse of yours is heavy enough that it should have left a pretty deep mark where it was cast. There should be traces of it all around, and it’s possible we can track if we find enough traces.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small, purple crystal, offering it to Simone.

“This is a nice little relic that I’ve picked up. It’s been pretty hit or miss with how it works, but based on your desire to die, I’m pretty sure it’ll work as advertised. This is an Arc of Want, which leads you to your heart’s desire.” He placed it in her hand. “Once we get closer to Adeluna, it should make it a bit easier to track down at least something.” The hunter turned to Osiria and smiled, which brought a scowl from Lewis.

“We might be gone for awhile. Is there anything you need before I leave?”

Simone smirked a bit at what Lewis knew and nodded, "Better than I can remember it I'm sure. I never did obtain the memories that my other selves had when they all merged. It's a shame it might have helped but the fey lord certainly was crafty about what I was allowed to remember and what I wasn't." He had still allowed her too much which was proving to be his downfall.

Leilah nodded, "I can pull some strings… and some even better ones. We have a historian in Arri whos been collecting books and records spanning the last three thousand years. If anyone had books on it… It would be Teuila. She is a pain in the rear though I'm afraid. She doesn't let just anyone into the Red Court Library. I do know that my sister Taimi gets let in for alchemy research so I can ask her. It could be a while before we hear anything. We'll send a bird once we hear back."

Simone was cautious before she took the stone. "I'm going to let the other Simone back out now. It tires me out the longer I stay here. This loophole isn't foolproof unfortunately." Simone blacked out a bit and Lewis was able to catch her. She mumbled a bit before stirring, "Did I black out again? It seems to be happening more." The older Simone was right though as the young Simone looked very tired compared to how she was before the take over.

Osiria waited until she knew Simone was done before crossing her arms, "I would say a good fuck but I'm on bedrest until Izzy comes." She rubbed her belly and smiled at Rhenakos. "Just make sure to get back here before Izzy comes or I'll gut you myself." Kalina let out a gag noise and Osiria frowned deeply. She really wanted to fight her aunt but it was exhausting. "Just be safe and make sure you get home. I don't need Izzy not having her father. Understand?" Osiria offered him a kiss to the lips and a hug.

Simone tilted her head once she was steady on her feet, "You two act like a pretty good couple when you aren't throwing each other through windows and screaming." She remembered though the flashbacks of her first night with Lewis and what she liked, which made her blush. "Though I guess that's making me a bit of a hypocrite," Simone whispered loud enough for Lewis to hear.

Leilah was sipping on her coffee, "If you want to make it back for Izzy's birth you won't want to take the public airship… It just so happens that a few days ago a certain couple with a certain Silver Rose airship showed back up for the first time in two years. You can ask them to take you Rhenakos… Might save your rear from Os's wrath."

Rhenakos raised his eyebrow at the comment of the Silver Rose, and shook his head. “No way, really?” He hadn’t heard from them in over two years, not since they had found him half dead. It was never explained to him just how they had found him, but he wasn’t one to look a gift horse in the mouth when it came to miracles.

“I just hope that he’s willing to lend a hand.”

It didn’t take long for the small party to make their way to the airship docks, where surely enough the Silver Rose was docked. Rhenakos was quick to find out where they were, and the group found themselves standing before not a couple, but a brand new family.

Aeolus was standing tall and proud as ever, his arms folded as the demon hunter approached. Overall neither of them had changed much over the years, only really showing their age in the way they spoke and acted. Rosemary was with him, but in her hands was a small, squirming bundle that seemed happy that its mother was paying it attention.

“No way…” Rhenakos said, smiling. “There’s no way! Did you….did you two..?”

"He might be more agreeable than you think," Leilah said but somehow she knew that Rhenakos probably didn't know where Aeolus and Rosemary had been.

Rosemary didn't change at all and she was still overall very small standing next to her tall husband. The tiny child was giggling as Rosemary kissed her cheek. She was very proud of their child. "Didn't you get our letter Rhenakos?" The tiny angel tilted her head. "We told you we got pregnant and that we were going to take off for a while."

After a few moments Rosemary gave up trying to jog Rhenakos's memory. He probably lost it or something stupid happened to it. "This is Lexi. She's just about two now and quite the little handful." She had little wings too just like her parents. Bright blue eyes were curiously staring at the new people surrounding her. She was tanned like her mother.

"Da?" Lexi called up to Aeolus before reaching up to him.

Rosemary laughed and held her up, "I think she is tired of me now Love."

Simone was wide eyed as she bowed, "MY NAME IS SIMONE! Can… Can I come closer to her?" She was fascinated with children and couldn't understand her love for them.

"Sure! She is biting a little though so don't get overly too close to her," Rosemary warned before Simone got close to Lexi and held her hand.

"She is so cute!"

Rhenakos tried for a moment to think back to any important letters, but nothing seemed to come to mind at first. As Rosemary started to explain the timelines, he had a vague memory of some rather rambunctious activities that had occurred between him and Osiria, and a table ending up catching fire.

“Er…probably just got lost. You know how that can happen,” Rhenakos replied. It was pretty obvious that he was reflecting, but Roesmary seemed content with his answer and it was dropped.

Aeolus took Lexia from Rosemary. In complete contrast to his usual badass demeanor, Aeolus seemed to now be warm, caring, and shockingly compassionate as he lifted his child and smiled at her, rubbing his nose against her as she cooed and giggled at her father. When Simone got close, there was a sudden shift, and his eyes flickered silver as she approached, She seemed harmless enough, though, her excitement seeming genuine enough, and Rosemary was okay with it.

“I assume you didn’t just come here to say hi?” Aeolus asked as Simone played with Lexia, the baby girl seeming to have a blast.

Rhenakos shook his head, “No. I’m hoping you’ll lend us a hand.”

It didn’t take long for Rhenakos to explain the jist of what was happening, and Aeolus thought for a few moments. “It sounds dangerous. I’ll make a compromise…” He looked at Rosemary. “As long as it’s okay with Rose, you can take the airship. We’ll stay here…worst comes to worse, we’ve can manage to get around.”

The hunter clapped his hands together. “That’s great! I’m sure Raile won’t mind if you need a place to stay. I owe you one!”

Aeolus smirked. “You owe me a lot, but it’s fine. Do what you need to do.” He glanced at Simone. “I hope you find what you’re looking for.”

Simone stopped for just a second when Aeolus changed his demeanor with her. It was understandable that he was protective of his daughter. Any parent would be if some stranger came bounding over. However, Rosemary nodded to her husband and Aeolus gave their giggly toddler over to Simone. Simone’s eyes lit up and she was cuddling her almost immediately.

Rosemary looked up at her husband nodded, “I don’t mind at all. I would love to show Lexi around and being around all the pregnant women might do me some good!” She elbowed Aeolus softly in a teasing moment. “Don’t worry too much about how we will get around. Lexi likes grass so we can always take her to the gardens around here… She would have a blast in flowers.”

Simone made Lexi cry and there was panic in the young girl’s eyes. Rosemary went to help but the shift in Simone startled her as the older Simone started to rub Lexi’s back. Rosemary looked up at Aeolus since they could never get Lexi not to cry as fast as Simone just did. “That was amazing Simone,” Rosemary was sort of jealous as she huddled around the woman.

“I’ve had a lot of practice. My younger self doesn’t know what to do but I do,” Simone smiled a bit and looked at Lexi who was content now. Rosemary nodded not sure what to make of the woman as Simone passed off Lexi and the younger Simone came back after a little trip where Lewis caught her. “Did I hurt Lexi?”

“No, she is really content!” Rosemary made sure that Simone wasn’t feeling guilty. Simone smiled up at Lewis since she loved the baby time all the same. “I’m jealous at how well behaved she was for you!” Rosemary knew it was the other Simone who did it.

They said their goodbyes and Simone was interested in the airship. “I’ve never been on one of these before.” Should be interesting enough.