marilyn/ A Long Awaited Reunion

[Arabella May Knight .]

It had been a long, long time since Arabella Knight had felt the mortal sun on her face, taken a breath of fresh, pure, Earth air, walked amongst people who she could be fairly confident weren't murderers or rapists or just lived. She was dead, she knew she was, but she felt alive again, well and truly alive. Dangerous delusion it might have been, but that didn't mean she wasn't going to cling to it for all it was worth. It was one of the best things she'd felt in a long time.

And it certainly helped that she was going to see her sister again. Marilyn, Marilyn who'd cared for her and protected her, shielded her from her parents and everyone else who had meant her harm. Marilyn meant safety, love, friendship. Marilyn meant home. A new home, a better home, one for just them, where no one would try to harm them, either of them, ever again. Because Arabella might have looked like the same seventeen year old who'd hung herself out of desperation, but she had teeth and claws now and every intention on using them to ensure she was never in that place again.

She didn't actually know where Marilyn lived, or what she was doing now, or anything about her life, but she'd gotten an address from an acquaintance who'd told her she'd probably find her sister there, eventually. It seemed to be a club of some sort, looked a bit seedy to be honest, but she was sure if Marilyn worked there, it was safe, safe enough at any rate. It seemed fairly deserted, probably because it was high noon, but, well, Arabella didn't exactly have anywhere else to go yet, so here she'd wait.

A man walking by stopped to peer at her strangely. She wasn't sure who he was or why he was staring at her so intensely, with that odd leering smile on her face. Offering him a faint smile, figuring a bit of friendliness had never hurt anyone, Arabella asked, "Good afternoon, sir. Can I help you?"

"You one of 'em girls? Here in daylight?"

"Uh, no. Sorry, sir. I'm not entirely sure which girls you mean. I'm just here looking for my sister, Marilyn Knight."

"Ah, her. She's a pretty one. And you her sister? Care to give a fella a private show?"

He was backing her towards a wall, which Arabella didn't like, but she wouldn't freak out, didn't need to freak out. She was a demon and he was just a human. He wouldn't, couldn't hurt her, "I'm afraid I don't know what you mean, sir. But, as I said, I'd really just like to find my sister. Sorry, sir."

[MARILYN ANNE KNIGHT .]

because it's my way or the highway

[atrb=border,0,true] it had been on her mind to tell axel to start doing direct deposit when it came down to pay cheques. she knew that it was slightly redundant, seeing as most of the money she made, she did while dancing, so everything was in dollar bills. however, for the hours that she did some waitressing, that was where the actual pay roll came into play and, to be honest, marilyn didn't exactly like going to work when she didn't need to. sure, picking up her money was a need, but it wouldn't have to be with the old blood sucker actually did direct deposit. she figured it was because he could trying and threaten the girls to sleep with him or else they wouldn't get their money. she wouldn't put it past him to do so. as much as she didn't mind having axel as her boss, nor as a good lay, there were times where he really pissed her off. he was so high and mighty on himself that it made her sick at some points, and all she wanted to do was knock him down a few pegs. it wasn't just him that got on her nerves like that, it was pretty much every sleezy man who walked into the club, thinking that they were an exception and could break the rules. needless to say, marilyn didn't exactly go as hungry as most demons would. walking down the streets of lillehammer in her six inch stilettos, holding a cigarette in one hand as she did so, she brought it to her lips and took a drag. letting it out, she kept walking towards the gentleman's club, hoping that axel would be in to hand her the cheque she had been needing. however, as she neared the club, she could see a scene unfolding in front of her. she couldn't see the poor girl being harrassed, but she knew that the scumbag wouldn't get a finger on her, not if mar had anything to do about it. assault against women always touched a nerve with her, if only because the reason as to why she had died was because of her uncle. throwing the cigarette butt on the ground, she stopped on it and looked up at the man who was backing the poor girl into a corner. immediately, she recognized the man as one of the regulars, a drunkard who usually took things too far, "hey, toby. why don't you go inside and get rejected in your usual manner." she scolded before she put her hands on her hips. she watched as the man turned around and scoffed, "Bitch, I hardly recognized you, with your clothes on." he spat before marilyn rolled her eyes, "you had better back off before your get escprted off the property again, you asswipe." the blonde snapped before she took another step forward, knowing that things would get messy if he intended to take it any further. usually, marilyn would have taken care of the man herself, however, it was broad daylight and she couldn't risk exposing her identity. so, she was kind of glad when toby did nothing but mutter some curses under his breath and walked into the club. as he did so, marilyn pulled out both her cigarettes and her lighter before popping one of the cigs into her mouth and lighting it. taking in a drag, she lowered the lighter and put it into her bag, along with the cigarettes, before putting it in between her fingers and letting out smoke, "you okay, kid?" she asked, still not really being able to see the poor girl's face, "something tells me you're in the wrong part of the woods."

627 . arabella . outfit
[style=font-size: 10px; font-family: arial;]STOKED FOR THESE TWO.

[/color][/style][/center]

[Arabella May Knight .]

Arabella nearly jumped as she heard a familiar voice. Marilyn, it was Marilyn, telling the man, Toby, off, getting him to leave. She sounded just like Arabella had remembered, all brassy confidence and good-natured profanity, like Marilyn, her sister. She was here. Really here. Arabella was on her way back to her old life. Even if Marilyn was apparently having an affair with this Toby, she realized suddenly as his words sunk in. And not a very amicable one either. Well, that was...odd. Marilyn had never been the type to take trouble from anyone. The sister Arabella had known should have left a man like Toby in minutes, but what did she know? This was Marilyn, Marilyn would have a reason, an explanation.

And Marilyn didn't recognize her, Arabella realized after Toby had left, her words finally making it through her confusion. She thought she was just some kid, some poor lost girl. That was more like the Marilyn Arabella remembered, stopping to rescue a complete stranger. Good to know she hadn't gone all bad. But it hurt that she hadn't recognized her own sister. Arabella didn't think she looked so different. Being a demon, she hadn't let herself age a day, mostly because she didn't feel any older. Maybe she was a bit warier than she'd been, had lost a bit of weight, and she was a year older than the last time Marilyn had seen her, but she doubted she could look as changed as she felt. All the damage was on the inside. She knew that much.

"Marilyn?" Arabella asked, a bit shakily but not letting tears come to her eyes. She'd been an emotional wreck back when she last saw Marilyn, crying over every little perceived slight. Hell had burned that out of her quickly enough. Instead she smiled weakly, because it was either mirth or tears and it was always better to look happy. Happiness was strength, a sign of power, whereas sadness meant someone else was strong enough to take whatever they wanted from you. Arabella was never going to be that sort of girl again, "It's me, Arabella. It's so good to see you again! I've been searching ever so hard for you, was beginning to worry I might not be able to find you. But what are you doing in a dreadful place like this?"

[MARILYN ANNE KNIGHT .]

because it's my way or the highway

[atrb=border,0,true] over the years that she had been a demon, she realized that it was much easier not to take shit from people, seeing as she now knew she could do whatever the fuck she wanted to do to them. most of them couldn't even put up a fight before she was sucking the life from them; it was entertaining seeing scumbags getting their just desserts. after being raped by her uncle and then murdered by her own father, it was easy for her to justify why certain people needed to die, if only to save hundred more lives. she was very sure that what she was doing, she was at least kind of doing it for good, even though the main reason was just simply because it felt good. for a demon, she had more morals than most, even though her attitude was horrible and she had little to not sympathy for most people. the only people she had sympathy for were people like her, tormented by men who treated them like shit and who had no way out. marilyn knew just how that felt, so she always kept that close to her heart. so, when she saw a man picking on a small girl, she couldn't help but step in, even though most of the time she would have walked away and let the whole thing play out for what it was. watching toby walk into the club, she snarled at him and knew that he would get what was coming to him later tonight, if he managed to not get kicked out before then. he was the type of customer that would drink until he was escorted out for harassment. it was a miracle that marilyn hadn't already ended him. as she pulled out a cigarette and put it between her lips, she didn't really look at the poor girl who had just been attacked. much to interested in lighting her cigarette, she pulled in a deep drag before letting it out. it was then that she lifted her head and looked at the girl in front of her. the face was so familiar and it tugged her insides out of her mouth when she finally realized who it was. the voice was what confirmed it and marilyn felt like falling to her knees in tears. it couldn't be her. no. she couldn't have ended up like this. dropping the newly lit cigarette, she took three big steps towards her baby sister and wrapped her arms around her. not a word was said, what could she say? cradling her sister's head, she dug her head into her neck and held back the tears that threatened to fall. after a moment, she finally caught her barrings and pulled away, looking at arabella in the eyes. lifting a hand, she pushed back some of the smaller girl's hair and finally managed to speak, "i'm sorry." she whimpered before she shook her head, "I'm so sorry, arabella..." she didn't know where to start. she was sorry for a lot of things; she was sorry for not recognizing her, sorry for not protecting her in the first place and sorry that she had turned out the way that she had. the question that arabella asked her, as to why she was in front of the gentleman's club, she knew that arabella couldn't know she worked there, "I...I was just passing by on my way home..." she managed to say, "but that's not important. are you okay?"

585 . arabella . outfit
[style=font-size: 10px; font-family: arial;]STOKED FOR THESE TWO.

[/color][/style][/center]

[Arabella May Knight .]

Arabella nearly cried as Marilyn hugged her, recognized her, accepted her. For a moment, she'd been scared she was going to turn away, leave her with nowhere to go, no one to turn to. Arabella hadn't had a back-up plan, hadn't thought that far ahead, and there wasn't much a seventeen year old, demon or no, could do on her own. If she'd still been the religious type, she would have thanked God. As it was, she just hugged her sister as tightly to her as she could, let herself feel safe, again, finally.

"Don't be sorry," Arabella murmured. It wasn't her sister's fault, any of it. It was their father's and their uncle's and their whole screwed up family's, but never Marilyn's. Marilyn had always been there for her, had always looked out for her. She was everything an older sister aught to be and, Arabella knew, would never have left her of her own free will. Just like she'd known she'd take her in, didn't even pause to consider that maybe Marilyn was sorry she was here, sorry to have to take care of her. This was Marilyn. Her sister, always, "It's good like this, really. No one can hurt us now, ever again."

Arabella smiled faintly at the small lie. It was a good one, at the very least. No point in telling Marilyn how much trouble she'd had adapting to Hell. She'd just been overreacting, hadn't been trying hard enough, had let her past overwhelm the present. She'd be better now, now that she was out, getting a fresh start. Everything would be better now.

"And I'm okay," Arabella replied to Marilyn's concern, smiling for real as the Marilyn she knew came back, putting her before all else. Arabella liked being taken care of sometimes, hedonistic though she knew it was. It had been a long time since someone had actually cared how Arabella felt. She accepted Marilyn's explanation for her presence without hesitation, wondering faintly at how clever, or lucky, her erstwhile guide had been, pointing her right to this spot. Maybe premonition was a demon thing, something she'd be able to pick up in a year or two. That would be cool. Arabella always had liked to be well-prepared, "Just a bit frightened is all. I guess I'm still learning the area. It was fortunate that you came when you did. My ride didn't care to stay too long. Must have had some important business back...there."

Arabella had never been much of one for cursing, even if avoiding the word seemed rather pointless, after everything that had happened there.

[MARILYN ANNE KNIGHT .]

because it's my way or the highway

[atrb=border,0,true] as strong as marilyn thought she was, or how she liked to to be perceived to be, all of that fell away when it came down to her little sister. even when bella was first born, marilyn took an oath to take care of her and protect her from any and all harm. she had failed miserably and all marilyn could think about was what kind of shit arabella had to go through to finally get to this point. marilyn had never stayed in hell long enough to really get a taste of it, seeing as she was sent to earth almost right away. so she could only imagine was her baby sister had to go through to get here, finally with her. honestly, she never though she would be able to see her little sister again, figuring that, if she died, she would go to heaven if only because of what a kind and generous person she was. so, to see her as a demon was shocking, to say the least. keeping her arms wrapped around the tiny girl, marilyn rubbed her back, not ever wanting to let her go again. this was what she had been dreaming of, to see her sister again; to hold her in her arms and realize that she was, in fact, real. when she had managed to pull away and look into arabella's blue eyes, she felt a spark ignite within her, making her feel as though she needed to protect her sister and keep her safe, just as she had promised before. she would final this time, she couldn't. hearing her speak, marilyn furrowed her eyebrows in concern, "are you sure?" she asked again before she looked over towards the club and felt her heart sink a bit. she hated lying to arabella but she knew that it was for her own good; god only knows what her little sister would say if she found out about her older sister's stripping, "yeah, i guess it is." she explained before she nodded and wiped her eye, "so, where are you staying?" she asked, knowing that wherever she was staying, it wasn't good enough. it wasn't safe enough. the only appropriate place for arabella was in marilyn's apartment, with her. almost immediately, she knew that she would have to stop bringing men home, stop partying so much and actually slow down all together. but that didn't even phase her, if only because she knew her little sister wouldn't approve. she didn't want to brag or anything, but she knew that arabella idolized her and marilyn didn't want to do anything to ruin that.

437 . arabella . outfit
[style=font-size: 10px; font-family: arial;]STOKED FOR THESE TWO.

[/color][/style][/center]

[Arabella May Knight .]

"I'm sure," Arabella nodded. She was going to be strong, to do things right this time. She had what she wanted. She was here, on Earth, with her sister. How could she be anything other than alright? What had happened didn't matter, it was the past now and it was the present that counted. Arabella had a strong feeling it was going to be a good one, definitely one worth waiting on. Marilyn would never know how utterly she'd failed in Hell, how bad a demon she'd been. It didn't matter now. She was going to live the life she'd been supposed to have, or as much of it as she could. That was one good thing about not being that good a demon. Nobody really cared much where she went or what she did, as she'd found out the hard way.

"I don't know where I'm staying yet. I just got here. I was told this was where you were going to be and, well, I came. Stupid, maybe. I probably should have worked things out first, but well, I knew you'd be able to help me. You can help me, right?" And that was a stupid question. Marilyn had always helped her, always looked out for her. She'd been more of a mother than the woman who'd given birth to them both, since day one. She was nearly an adult, wiser, more street smart, stronger. Arabella hadn't doubted for a moment that she'd know what to do, would take her in, protect her, help her. If it was anyone else, Arabella would have wondered if being a demon would change that, but this was Marilyn, always.

"Are you alright?" Arabella asked, realizing she was falling back onto old habits, expecting things of others and offering nothing in return, "When I couldn't find you in Hell, I got scared. I met someone who'd known you, but they hadn't seen you in a while by the time I showed up. I was worried you'd died...again."

[MARILYN ANNE KNIGHT .]

because it's my way or the highway

[atrb=border,0,true] all that marilyn could possibly think of at that moment was how lucky she was to finally have her sister back in her arms. she could remember how she would always hide arabella in her room with her whenever their parents fought. it got worse when marilyn got older, having her father drag her out of the room to go and see her uncle for a bit. yeah, it was gross and disgusting, but as long as arabella was safe, it didn't matter. of course, no one except for the devil herself and arabella knew of marilyn's past; she wasn't the type to draw attention to it, seeing as she was far too proud; well, that's what she kept telling herself. in reality, marilyn was ashamed of her past, ashamed that she let her uncle do that to her, ashamed that she let her father kill her and most of all ashamed of the fact that she left arabella alone. she wished she could go back and fix everything, but it was far too late for that, now arabella was a demon, just like her, when in reality she should have been an angel for how innocent she was. it killed marilyn to know that her baby sister had to go through hell and back (literally) to get where she was now. hearing her sister explain that she had no place to stay, the older knight sister felt even more relieved that she had found her little sis. arabella seemingly had no where else to go but with marilyn, which made things easier, seeing as she wouldn't let her be anywhere else but with her, at least until she got her bearings. looking at her up and down, marilyn figured there was a lot she needed to do for the youngster. smiling softly, she pushed arabella's hair back once more and nodded, "that's good then, because i wouldn't want you staying anywhere else but with me." she explained before she nodded, "I'm also going to be taking you shopping." she added before she smiled and turned, wrapping an arm around her sister's shoulder before she started to push her back towards the house that she lived in. she would just have to worry about getting her pay cheque tomorrow. at arabella's question, marilyn looked over at her and nodded, 'I don't think you realize how fine I am, maybird." she explained before she stopped and gave her sister a side hug, "finding you is the one thing i thought i'd never get to do." she added before she kept walking, "so don't worry about me, okay?" she assured before she shook her head, "nope, i'm perfectly fine. i'm alive...well...sort of." she explained and smiled softly, a genuine smile that se hadn't felt on her face for a very, very long time and, for the first time in years, she laughed a genuine, heartfelt laugh.

482 . arabella . outfit
[style=font-size: 10px; font-family: arial;]STOKED FOR THESE TWO.

[/color][/style][/center]