Ripped Wings

@ BearGirl

A job? Eugene looked up at her, and briefly glanced at Lily - what sort of job? He did not even know. The Angels were not all knowledgeable of the details of the human world. But before he even had the chance to stutter Lily had rescued him and he nodded along casually and recovered the tiniest of hesitations to keep chopping the food.

He thought he'd escape but alas, the girl was persistent. Not only did both of them refuse to leave and stayed in the kitchen but both of them came even closer to 'help' cook. The only thing they did help in was making him even more lost. Eugene momentarily forgot how to cut and found himself staring at the board instead. He opened his mouth to say, but the girls were quick and they had half a conversation (or maybe a full one!) before he even got the chance to peep. Humans were awfully quick on their feet and thoughts, it seemed. Angels liked to take things slow, mull over and think, and find out.

Sometimes awfully slow.

Hottie? Sexy? Adorable couple? "No, I-uh-we're not- we're- it's-" he shut his mouth for a moment and met Sammie's gaze with his own, willing his mind to settle and form one sentence at a time. There was a little too much going on. He called for a calming aura for himself, and for the environment around him. Relax. His eyes closed for a second and lips twitched into a small smile. "I do think Lily is attractive. Any man would be blessed to have her." He said it simply, straight with a small smile and a soft voice and keeping Sammie's gaze even now. Whatever hesitation he had a little while ago was gone.

"I don't mind you getting to know me as long as in turn, you tell me about yourself too." A small tilt of his head, and he resumed his chopping.

Lily's blush seemed to grow darker at Eugene's words. Though she looked over at him, giving him a little smile and a nod before going back to cooking what was in front of her. Sammie, on the other hand, was ecstatic. She turned to Lily and shook her lightly. "Oh did you hear that? Any man would be blessed" She purred.

Right as Sammie was turning back to Eugene, Lily was quick to set the plates in her hands. "Go set up the table Sammie and give him a moment to breath. Goodness sakes." Sammie looked at her of a moment before smirking and heading out of the kitchen. Lily then finished off the meat and then turned to Eugene.

"I am sorry about her. I know she is a little...everywhere." Lily said softly, giving him a little smile. "But I promise she means no harm. She just likes trying to set people up and she is a little nosy. Though you don't have to answer any of her questions if you don't want to. Please don't feel too pressured."

Lily set down the food on the counter, now finishing up with dinner. "We just need to set the food down on the table and then we can eat."

Eugene took her apology with an understanding nod of his head. It was as expected. "It is alright. I think her attitude is... interesting." He lowered his voice and glanced to wear Sammie had disappeared to. "We never have anything like it."

The food he picked up the moment it was set down and carried it to the table. It seemed he needed not be told of how to, or where to, place things. He effortlessly copied Sammie's and Lily's actions in setting out the plates and cutlery, and went as far as to offer help putting the food onto the plates in the amounts they found satisfactory.

And with the help, it didn't take long for him to finally find himself seated and fork in hand, ready to dig in. The food was indeed, tasty, albeit it could not compare to the wonders of heaven - but as for mundane efforts, it was pleasant and intriguing. He made sure to comment on the food during the dinner, but did little to stir Sammie's interest more, painfully aware of the gazes she cast between him and Lily and the assumptions she might have made in her mind. As such, he did his best to act neutral, and respond to her questions with enough information to keep her satisfied and chewing, so to speak.

[Wasn't sure if you wanted something to happen during dinner or not xD]

@ ashen knight;

skipping to the morning!

Lily smiled widely as they stood in the entrance of the work building. It was almost time for her to bring him down to the mail room, and already she was so pleased with how Eugene was doing. He was up on time, was dressed properly, and had even made breakfast. She had been really worried about being an angel to a job like this. After all, Eugene's knowledge of the world was rather limited and she did not want something happening to him.

"Okay, just listen for today and do as they tell you. The workers in the mail room will tell you how to do the job. I promise that you will get the hang out it." Lily said as she walked up to him and started to fix his shirt and tie. "And please please please try not to talk too much today. I know that sounds weird but I really do not want you to get into any trouble. Especially not on your first day."

"And if you see anything weird, just come up and get me right away. I am on the fifth floor, okay?" Lily was also a little concerned that another mythical creature was going to pop up. Oh what was she going to do if that happened? "And I am going to pick you up for lunch so just wait for me until then."

@ BearGirl

Eugene stood behind her, looking at the rather elegant building in awe. It was quite different to the last time he was back on earth, and now that the workers here were willing and not part time slaves, it was a good plus. Humanity seemed to have restored itself a little.

His attention turned to Lily when she started talking, and he eagerly nodded to her instructions. Yes, he could do that, yes he would be quiet. It wasn't hard. Fifth floor? No problem. One glance at the elevators though and he figured he'd take the stairs. Her hands ruffling and fixing his shirt and tie were admittedly cute, and rather pleasant. Calming even. He offered her a gentle smile.

"Okay, I understand. I will wait for you."

And then he was there in the mail room, being sent left and right and told what to do. It was hectic for the first few hours, and before he knew it - it was almost lunch. He wouldn't have noticed, but someone brought in food and it smelled delicious. Eugene straightened, and ran a hand through his hair, casting a glance at the papers and envelopes he had finished sorting. Then he reached up and fixed his rolled up sleeves (they had gotten in the way of working so he carefully rolled them up, and now it had become a habit, rather an attractive one and suiting him to be honest). Everything had gone smoothly.

{I assume this is where Lily+friend waltz in? Please correct me if I'm wrong and I'll fix }

@ ashen knight;
(You are absolutely correct!)

Lily knocked on the door to the mailroom before slowly walking in. She had learned to do so to prevent the swinging door from hitting someone on their way out. It always seemed to be hectic in here whenever she had to come down. A warm smile spread across her face as she saw Eugene. Everything must have gone well. He seemed okay and Lily did not get any news otherwise.

"Hi! We are here to pick you up for lunch!" Lily told him. "One of my friends wanted to come along as well. He would not take no for an answer." She let out a laugh. "I hope you do not mind though."

Once she was in through the entrance, Anthony walked in behind her. He was a rather attractive man. Anthony had dark black curly hair that somehow was styled perfectly. A chiseled jaw line and almost mystifying dark brown eyes. He was wearing a dark grey suit with a bright blue tie. As his eyes landed on Eugene, a coldness came across his face. Fuck

When Anthony made his way into the room, Lily stepped a bit to the side so they were all able to face each other. "Eugene, this is Anthony and vice versa."

@ BearGirl

Eugene looked up only when he heard her familiar voice, for too many people had already walked in and out for - enough times for him to stop reacting to the door every time it opened. He smiled in greeting. "Hey," he greeted, relieved that it was time for him to be free. He wouldn't admit it but he felt a little tired from all the work. After all it had been his very first day working in human society. He somewhat underestimated the effort required.

Nodding to her words, he cheerfully glanced to the incoming figure in question, lowkey hoping it wasn't anyone like Sammie for he had run out of excuses and stories to tell, when the thought abruptly got cut short.

Demon.

The world seemed to slow for him, and he became acutely aware of every single motion in the room. The slow of the demon's step, and the suit, and the tie that sat on him, the coldness in his eyes. They both knew each other's origins. It was unavoidable.

But Lily didn't. At least, Eugene did not suppose she knew her friend was a demon - she would have warned him beforehand, no? She had seen one before. For a moment, mistrust sparked in him, what if she and the demon were accomplices? But the spark was instantly extinguished. Her soul was pure. She was not involved in any scheme. With this thought, Eugene smiled brightly to the demon and extended his hand, feigning complete ignorance. He wan't sure of the situation, nor the demon's aims. He would not risk a full out fight here and now, when he was weak and there were people around. Half demon or not, weak demon or not, Eugene was cut off from the strength of heaven. He was merely an increment above human strength.

"Nice to meet you, I'm Eugene."

@ ashen knight;

Anthony had gone stiff when Eugene introduced himself. Now that was not what he had been expecting for an angel. Normally an all out fight would happen. His eyes narrowed at the man suspiciously, but only for a moment when Lily was looking away. Anthony was hesitant to trust that anything good would come from spending time with an Angel. How unfortunate that Lily had to go off and find such an unappealing person.

"The pleasure is mine, Eugene." He said before stepping back a bit. Maybe Eugene was waiting to attack him in a more desirable location. He will need to keep an eye on him. And if able, He needed to peel Lily away from this man.

Oblivious to the fact that both men seemed rather tense, Lily smiled brightly at them. "Great. Now let us go get some food!" Lily said excitedly before she made her way out of the post room. "I was thinking that we would just go to the past place that is next door. Or we could always go to the little asian American fusion restaurant that is done the street."

Once Lily was heading out of the room, Anthony took a step to the side so that Eugene may past him. Rather that the Angel had his face facing him. "Angels first/ He hissed.

Eugene lowered his hand awkwardly. So the other knew. He met his gaze evenly, but didn't hold it for long. When the other narrowed his eyes, Eugene held back a snort. Typical. "Sounds like a great idea," he chipped in at Lily's proposals and offered her a smile. "Either one is fine with me." He watched her leave and grabbed his jacket, noticing how Anthony waited out for him to walk past.

"No idea what you're on about," he replied just as quietly, a calm look to his eyes, with a little straightening of his back. Being near him was repelling enough, but he couldn't scuffle now. Having a demon at his back was somewhat unnerving but Eugene decided that if he acted as if he weren't afraid maybe it'd throw the demon off. He threw the jacket over and on, lining up behind Lily and effectively placing himself between her and Anthony. When they passed a reflective glass, he casually glanced to the side and at Anthony's reflection, but didn't express anything other than a look which said 'i'm watching you'. He was even tempted to place his hands on Lily's shoulders, but the mere though of making her uncomfortable restrained him from doing so.

@ BearGirl

@ ashen knight;

Anthony was tempted to roll his eyes when Eugene said he did not know what he was talking about. Of course Eugene knew. There was no way he did not know. But his actions made it clear that the angel was not prepared to fight, yet. Did he just not want to do it in front of Lily or was there more going on here? How did Lily even find him?

As they walked to the restaurant, Anthony kept right behind him. It was better to keep Eugene in front of him rather than behind. This way he could see if the angel planned on doing anything. This was all very suspicious but Anthony had no intentions of blowing his cover in front of Lily now. Though there was one thing about this set up that he did not like and it was that Eugene was closer to her. It was unlikely that he would attack a human, especially one that clearly had no idea what was going on behind her. But it still made him uneasy.

So the moment the three of them walked into the restaurant, Anthony made a beeline to Lily's right side and he moved his arm around her shoulders. He gently pulled her in close to him. Lily looked up at Anthony for a moment, giving him a bit of a quizzical look but one quick smile from Anthony made Lily just smile back before turning to the hostess. Anthony then looked over at Eugene and mouthed the words 'She is MINE' to him. There was no way he was going to give Lily up just because some angel appeared.

As they followed the hostess to their table, Lily looked behind her and smiled warmly at Eugene. "Trust me, you are going to love the food here."

@ BearGirl

Everything had been going fine in terms of the demon behaving until the piece of dirt put his arm around Lily. Eugene would have broken out into a brawl here and now but Lily smiled to him, and as much as Eugene was irritated by the gesture, he stayed his hand.

Not yet. Dont act yet.

In retrospect, Eugene would think that the demon had acted more like a jealous boyfriend than a demon, and would laugh. The thought did momentarily flash through his head in the moment but like foolish boy he was too caught up and didn't think reasonably enough.

"Oh?" he trained his gaze onto Lily instead, offering her a warm, wholesome smile. "Are you saying it's heavenly?" He grinned teasingly, and sat down. The hostess had gone ahead and pulled the chairs out for them so he didn't go out of his way to pull a chair out for her. Besides, with the intimate attention the demon was pushing onto her, he didn't want overwhelm her. Curiously, he looked around, both taking in the decors and assessing the space available should he need to scuffle with the demon. His bright eyes skimmed over everything before finally resting on Lily's face. Warm, appreciative.

@ ashen knight;

As the chairs were pulled out, Lily moved into the seat that was between Eugene and Anthony. Anthony's arm slid off of her while he moved into his own chair, though he still tried to stay close by sliding his chair just slightly closer to the woman. Lily did not seem to notice while they got settled.

A warm laugh came from her at Eugene's joke and Lily nodded to him. "Yes, I think that you will find that it is, indeed, heavenly."

The waitress came, and set the menus down in front of the three of them before taking their drink orders. Once she headed off, Lily turned her attention back to the two men in front of her for a moment before turning to Eugene. "How is your first day of work going?"

"Yes, how is the mail room." Anthony slid in, his voice turning a bit condescending towards the end.

Lily looked back at him, giving the man a look of confusion before giving him a quick glare.She gave him a quick 'shush' before looking back at Eugene. While she didn't understand where the attitude was coming from, Lily was quick to want to shut it down.

Anthony, on the other hand, seemed a bit set back from Lily's response. Once she turned away from him, he sent a glare Eugene's way, clearly not enjoying getting reprimanded because of an angel.

@ BearGirl
[Jfc a month flies past so fast ]

Eugene appreciated her response to his joke. A sneaky glance at Anthony told him the other did not think much of it - good. Eugene relaxed into his chair, perking up when his attention was sought with a question. Again, Anthony was there, like a dark shadow, a little lightning and a bit of a fang. Eugene pointedly ignored it.

"It was interesting," he said, recalling his time back there. "You can pick up so much from just handling little parcels and mail. Since I've never worked there, I did not know the procedure. The variety of names is astounding. Though, I admit, there are a lot of Johns and Pauls and Marys." He laughed and fiddled with the corner of a napkin, absent minded. "Some parcels are fresh and new, they havent come a long way. The others are tattered and battered. You wonder what their journey is. I think its... refreshing, no, peaceful. Someone will be happy receiving this parcel, someone sad. I wondered how many parcels were sent based on the inner personality of the receiver, or just the outer facade."

He looked up, his crystal eyes meeting Lily's. "It's a wonder how some people care for each other so much, and how others don't care at all."

He waved his hand then, giving a light laugh, switching his tone from a quiet and thoughtful mood to quick and light, "I think I went too deep? It was interesting. I enjoyed it. How was your day? Both of you."

@ ashen knight;

Lily watched Eugene thoughtfully as he spoke. He always had such a unique way of looking at the world. His outlook, his attitude, it was always refreshing to Lily. And it was interesting. When Eugene spoke, Lily felt like she was getting a little glimpse of what heaven and angels were like. Always so grateful for what they had, thoughtful as well. At least, she would like to think they were all like Eugene.

Though, now Lily could feel a sense of relief at Eugene's words. She had been nervous that something would happen in the mail room today. Though, it sounded like things have been going quite smoothly. However, the day was only half over and there was still plenty that could go wrong. "I am glad that it has been going well, and that you seem to like it." Lily smiled warmly. That had been another concern, what she would do if Eugene hated it. But it seemed like she could relax.

"My day has gone quite well, thank you for asking. Though, I must admit, I haven't done much since I was worried about how you were doing the the mailroom." Lily glanced over at Anthony, smiling brightly. "Though, I know you have had a successful day so far."

Antony perked back up immediately and nodded to Lily. "Yes, I did. This morning I just signed on a huge client for us." He smirked a little at the thought of his own success. "Plenty of work for everyone to do, coming up." Glancing over at Eugene, he smirked a little.e

@ BearGirl
Eugene managed a light smile, and the hint of a laugh. She was worried about him? He found that cute. He was perfectly capable of handling himself for now, he thought. Yes, admittedly, he was a little out of touch with the human world and perhaps a little outdated too, but he liked to think he did a fine job. That being said, he also admitted although rather reluctantly, how cute it was that she was concerned.

He reluctantly focused his attention on the boasting demon, who undoubtedly (in Eugene's mind) puffed his chest out for Lily. Had Eugene been any human, he would have experienced instant jealousy, but as an angel he couldn't afford it. "That's great news." Eugene complimented, even sounding genuine for a moment, "Well done. I imagine it wasn't an easy feat, unless, of course, it comes naturally to you." He set down the glass of water he had picked up earlier and cast Antony a smiley look. Does temptation and seduction of the human come naturally to you? he almost seemed to ask.

He hated to leave Lily in the shadow like so, but being an angel had its downfalls. One simply couldn't ignore a demon. Not this close. Not in this presence.

"So how long have you two known each other for? You seem well acquainted." Eugene turned the conversation to Lily.

@ ashen knight;

"Oh, we have known each other since Sophmore year in college, actually." Lily smiled brightly up at Anthony before lightly bumping him with her arm. "Do you remember?"

Anthony seemed to relax a little and a smile moved over his face as he gave her a small nod. She looked back at Eugene and told him the story. "I had gone to a party that night and unforunately, some frat boy started to kinda harass me, and was following me around the party. Though, lucky for me, Anthony noticed and got in between us. And, I am not even sure what he said but he stopped after that. I swear, he looked scared half to death!"

"Ever since then, I couldn't get rid of Anthony here." Lily teased. "He even managed to get a job at the same place."

"Now, that was just a concidence!" Athony said, quickly defending himself. The lie came easily and was natural to him. Though the next words out of his mouth were truthful. "Besides, I remember someone sticking to me for the rest of the party afterwords."

Before another word could come out of Lily's mouth, the waitress came back and collected their lunch orders. Once she scurried off, Lily stood up from her chair. "I am going to head to the bathroom." With that, she was gone.

@ BearGirl

A long time, it seems. Eugene watched the two interact, and despite everything in his body screaming 'he's a liar' - the interaction seemed genuinely friendly, on both ends. It didn't fit in his idea of a demon, and thus he rebelled against it. Although, at the mention of 'coincidence', Eugene scoffed inwardly. Yeah, and I'm the prince of hell..

"That's a while then, you must be very close." He smiled, half closed his eyes - almost like a cat - and tilted his head. But the moment Lily was gone, his facade fell off and he turned his eyes to Anthony, the smile remaining on his face, odd and unwelcoming. "You've known her for years? What could you possibly hold her for so long for? I thought you didn't keep them-" he avoided saying 'prey' or 'humans' out loud, "- for more than a few weeks at best."

Eugene shifted in his seat, feet pressing against the floor in a suitable position that should he need to jump up, he would do so quickly. The knife and fork were well within his reach. Unfortunately for him, Anthony also had his own set. And an unknown amount of power.

"But for years? That's an awfully long time. You must be hungry."

@ ashen knight;

Anthony's eyes narrowed at Eugene, and quickly the color changed to a deep red. Normally, he hid his demon features, but letting one out for Eugene seemed like a good idea. He also quickly planted his feet onto the ground. Though his hand moved right over the knife, ready to fight the angel if it came down to it.

A low growl came from his chest as Eugene mentioned his need to feed on humans. "Lily is not food." He snapped at him. "But she is mine so you better back off. I have claimed this human, and have done so for years now. Keep trying to get close to her and I'll make sure I have some angel for dessert."

Anthony's muscles started to tense up at the thought of losing his friend to some goody two shoes angel. "What do you want from her anyways? Don't you have something better to do than to be terrorizing me and Lily? Get away from her and I won't have to save a place for your head on my mantel."

@ BearGirl

A flash of the demon eyes was enough to send any Angel over the edge. A direct insult, if you ask them personally. Eugene would have thrown the table had they been alone, but for the sake of the people and of Lily, he merely gripped the edge and grit his teeth, pressing his lips into a fine line. If Angels were ever compared to clouds, he was a dark storm ready to hail.

"If she is not that, then why do you hang around her so protectively?" He narrowed his eyes. "Claimed a human? You think they're just claimable?" This definitely did not agree with the ethics and morals and values of all Angels. No terms and conditions. He lifted the corners of his lips into a smirk as the other continued on. "Your threats dont phase me. I bet you've never even fought an Angel. Say, am I the first you've ever seen?" He leaned back in his chair, almost gloating in his words. "Your aura is barely a wisp of smoke."

@ ashen knight;

A low growl came from Anthony's chest as the Angel continued to threaten him. His hands wrapped tighter around the dinner knife he was holding. He could not deny that this was his first time running across an Angel. For the most part, Anthony had been keeping a rather low profile compared to the others on earth for the last 20 years. He knew what he wanted, and saw no reason to throw around power, so currently he was low on the attack list. "That is none of your business, angel. I don't want to see you around her after this."

As he heard Lily making her way back to the table, Anthony quickly straightened up and let go of the knife he was holding. His muscles immediately relaxed before he took a more lazy position on his chair. He allowed his eyes to changed back to their human form and as Lily came closer, he tilted his head and smiled at her warmly. "Food should be out soon." Anthony saw no reason to not let his guard down. It was already clear that neither of them wanted to fight in public, and especially not in front of Lily.

Lily smiled at the both of them as she took her seat. "I am quite hungry, hoping it will come out soon." She glanced down at her lap, laying a napkin on top of it before moving her hands together. "What were you two talking about while I was gone?"