The Devil's Apprentice by Patrick Stewart (polar express read aloud TXT) 📕

It was a Friday afternoon. Alex was finishing another fruitless session of writing at the café. He just couldn’t get his mind into it. He picked up his laptop and shoved it into his backpack.

He looked up at the corner where Chrissy usually sat. The spot was empty. In fact, the entire café was empty, save for himself and Madeline the barmaid. The girl had sauntered over a few times to check on him. Alex still found her attractive. That mixed-race golden skin of hers, he still wanted to see her standing naked in his bedroom.

But not today.

Alex was feeling down. He didn’t like the predicament he was in. He didn’t want to be a Demon Hunter. After knowing what he now knew, going back to his old life of working nightshifts as a security guard wasn’t appealing. His life seemed pointless.

 As he was about to step out of the café, Madeline came over to say goodbye. Something she didn’t normally do. She wrapped her arms around him in a hug. Again, something she didn’t usually do.

Madeline smelt good. Having her warm body pressed against his, her hair in his face as he leaned down to hug her, he was tempted to carry her away. Not literally… Though he probably could.

Alex left the café, Madeline occupying part of his mind. The girl was incredibly cute. She had perfect teeth and nice smile. Combine that with the fitting white shirt, short black skirt and her golden skin… Madeline had given him her number. Maybe he should call her later today.

Alex turned the corner from the café street, and stepped onto Green Lanes. It was a quiet street, residential save for the one corner shop. It was outside that shop that Alex spotted him.

It wasn’t really an achievement seeing him. It would have been hard to miss, what with those fucking gigantic white feathery wings.

It was an angel. His admittedly magnificent white wings stuck out from under his black v neck t-shirt. He wore skinny blue jeans and, like every angel, he was toned and glowing. But the girl he was talking to couldn’t see his glow or his wings.

All she could see was a really handsome douchebag. A douchebag that rested his hand against the brick wall of the house beside the shop. The wall she had her back towards.

“Give me your number,” the angel said.

“I don’t want to,” the girl replied. “I have a boyfriend.”

“He won’t mind.”

“…I think he will mind.”

“Give me your number, bitch.”

The pretty girl with the long red hair frowned. She folded her arms over her loose-fitting pink top. “You just called me a bitch?”

 Alex was close enough now to see the angel’s face set and his lips tighten. “You know I could do whatever the fuck I want with you. There’s nothing you can do to stop me.”

The annoyance on the pretty girl’s face gave way to fear as she glanced around uncertainly. And then, spotting Alex, she waved her hand. “This isn’t consensual! He’s harassing me!”

The angel turned to look at Alex. And then he laughed before turning back to the girl. “He’s not going to do anything,” he said confidently.

Alex knew the rules that applied to Demon Hunters. No matter what they did, the angels were to be left alone. It was a good thing Alex wasn’t a Demon Hunter.

“Let her go, perv,” he said.

The angel turned his head once more and stared at Alex coldly. “The fuck you say?” he asked as his jaws tightened.

“She’s got a boyfriend. She doesn’t want to give you her number.”

The angel had been resting with his arm on the wall with his body opposite the girl, leaving her with a limited escape route. The angel pushed his hand off the wall and turned to face Alex. His enormous wings flapped in the background.

“You must be new,” he said. “But even then, it’s not an excuse. I’m going to teach you a lesson, Demon Hunter. I’m going to teach you you’re place, spawn of the devil.”

Now with an easy escape route, the red-haired girl came to stand beside Alex. “Did he call you a demon hunter?”

Alex turned his head and met her sparkling blue eyes. to look at her. “Yeah…”

“Why?”

He didn’t recall Karen ever saying he had to keep it a secret. Even if she had, he was in the mood to be rebellious. “Because I am a Demon Hunter,” he said. “And he’s an angel.”

The girl smiled. It was a pretty smile. Alex smiled back. It was a reluctant one. He wasn’t looking forward to the inevitable battle with the angel. Angels were strong. The last time he’d gone up against it, it had flicked him away as if her were a bug.

And they were going to fight. The angel wasn’t going to just walk away. It was far too arrogant to do that.

“He’s an angel?” the girl asked. “Isn’t he too pathetic?”

Alex nodded. “Most of them are assholes.”

The angel held his hands together, palms pressed flat against each other. He then separated the palms. In the gap that appeared, a rod of what looked like molten lava formed. Alex sighed. He wished Demon Hunters could create weapons out of thin fucking air. Going to the Red House of Satan to collect a weapon wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world.

“What the fuck is that?!” the girl beside him shrieked.

That made both of Alex and the angel turn to look at her.

“You can see it?” Alex asked.

“The rod of fire in his hands?” the girl asked, nodding her head frantically. “Of course I can see it!”

“What about my wings?” the angel asked as he flapped them. “Can you see my wings?”

“He has wings?” the girl asked, her eyes widening as she searched for them. “Where?”