"As you wish, my Lord," Rudolph Yerbler?agreed without much surprise. This may have started with him using his ability, but as he showed Crowley how to utilize what he already crafted, well it was just like his Master to be independent and resourceful. Going off on but a brief tangent, the yellow haired demon had to wonder if Salome would prefer someone independent and powerful or if she...well he could not be kidding himself about such matters. Naturally every female or male demon preferred some confidence. What he could be asking himself instead, would be, could she settle for one like him instead. The youthful looking demon seemed so reserved, almost to the point of shy, that she could theoretically tolerate something less than the ideal, like him.
?
But realizing he had been distracting himself with currently irrelevant mental chatter, Rudolph manifested as a dark shadow on the threshold of the Crossroads. He had a feeling, and now the visual confirmed its validity, it had indeed been Madeline Dubois, the poorly mislead psychic who once had hopes for a better future and now was angry at the path not taken. Rudolph himself had ensured some choices, like the cheating partner, the?rejection at the Metaphysical university Madeline had applied to, were all his doing. After these, she could have chosen differently of course, since the Father of All gave humans freedom of will, but the demon still remembered how he'd misused his, and was not surprised?to find others accepting the lure of the Dark with greater zeal than his.?
?
Some demons preferred the flashy approach and announced their arrival with trumpets, odd sounds and tantalizing giggles but Rudolph did not appreciate fanfare. They were here to do business and he was going to treat the?Crossroads office with all the dignity it deserved. "You called me, Madeline, to make a bargain, I assume. What about the purity of your soul you had so adamantly emphasized? " Rudolph mildly inquired and the brown haired psychic became almost hysterical, either missing or completely ignoring his well planned sarcasm. "Screw my soul, Yerbler, if Evan finds out I killed his son, he would never forgive no matter how many times I tried to tell him, ah never mind that, just make the deal, the boy back for the soul, will you?" the psychic impatiently demanded.
?
Rudolph found himself only too grateful that she did not bother him with all the tedious details of her too predictable life. The deal was exactly what he was hoping for, although she could have phrased it better.?If she did, he would have haggled over the number of years left to live, the ordinary affair. But this way, this specific choice of words, it really was all about choices, Rudolph considered, and found himself smiling. Noticing his expression, the psychic must have realized she'd erred, but evidently not?the?nature of her mistake. "And I still get to live a full life, until you claim my soul, no?three years bullshit for me, right?" she scowled and Rudolph placidly nodded.
?
"Agreed, your soul shall be mine when you full life is over,?Evan's boy will have life restored to his body, all in order," Rudolph commented with only a hint of a smile at his triple victory and the psychic summarily dismissed him. He would have to check the files but he thought he'd remembered the right kid. Of course, the body would be brought back to life, but Madeline never specified that the life returned will have to be the original soul. Too impatient to think clearly,?the psychic?gave him a golden opportunity and he was going to use it. If he managed to place the right kind of spirit inside of the boy's body, both Madeline and Evan could be finished off prematurely, their?feeble spells of defense notwithstanding. Of course he would have to think about it, or better yet, let Crowley think about it as he came back to report the?transaction to him. ? ? ?
Kat