Chapter 3: Eddy�s Errands by: DragonMouse ~( 8>
I know I�ve been annoying the hell out of Anita recently, keeping my secrets. She�s always called me a secretive bastard, and I always smile inside when she does, because I am. But she won�t have to be bothered much longer, because it will all end today, hopefully. If it draws out much longer, Crys will tell out of excitement, or Anita will shoot me for the hell of it.
Leaning in the doorway, I sipped coffee and almost growled at the telephone. Crys came into the room on her crutches, having become pretty good on them over the last month. She grinned and raised a sly eyebrow. �She hasn�t called _yet_? And what, twenty minutes late?� She shook her head in mock shame. �I think Donna�s giving up on you ever coming home, _Teddy_.�
I drained my mug and smirked. My Crys is a sharp one. Yes, my Crys. In one month, I�ve found an eleven-year-old who is �mine�. Who would�ve thought? Neither of us, that�s for sure. I checked my watch again, 12:30, damnit. It wasn�t that I wanted her to all, but the kid and I had to get to the courthouse soon and I did not want Anita talking to her. Boy, were they going to kill me when they get the news.
This time, I did growl, then met the girl�s eyes. �Ten minutes and we�re out of here. Screw them both if they can�t carry on a civilized phone conversation.�
She grinned again, �I�ll go finish getting ready.�
I thought about that grin. It was goofy, showing sharp teeth. Her incisors, on top and bottom, didn�t line up even with the rest, instead extending past the bottoms. They looked like small, out of place fangs. Anita thought it might have something to do with the minimal preternatural powers she has. She doesn�t know what flavor she is because the powers haven�t fully developed, but there was a �feel� to her. Once or twice, that grin had come close to scaring me, but only briefly.
I know my face was a schooled blankness, giving away none of my thoughts, when Anita came in. She looked me up and down as she shut the door and let Crys�s dog, Rio, off his leash. �Where are you going, all dressed up?� she asked as the big German shepherd lumbered to me, butting his head against my hand. Anita had said he looks as if he�d be better guarding the gates of hell then a house, gut looks are deceiving.
I almost gave my mysterious eyebrow, then thought better of it. �Crys and I have to go somewhere important. Donna hasn�t called, but we have to get going.� I took note of her expression, then added, �Be nice.�
Before she could say anything else, Crys came in, as dressed up as we�d seen her. The dark blue button down dress shirt she wore was actually tucked into khaki pants. Her belt was black with a silver buckle, her one hiking boot was black with silver eyelets. I noted with a flash of pride the clip of her thumb-open knife out of her pocket and the glimmer of silver around her neck from the cross she wore.
Anita looked us over once again, then took a step toward me. She reached out and adjusted my black silk tie, ever so slightly. My breath caught in my throat and I was sure she could feel my heart beating as she smoothed it to my chest. She didn�t notice and my face didn�t change, though inside I felt like an awkward teenager and I cursed myself. When she stepped back, I snuck a glance at the kid.
Her eyebrows were raised and those fangs were showing once again. Thoughts were flying behind those blue-ish eyes and I knew she�d seen, or sensed, more then Anita had. I let my eyes harden a bit, about half of my killing face, a slight warning not to say anything. In return, her smile stayed but the steely flash of defiance ran through her eyes. I smirked, then turned back to Anita. �We�ve gotta go. I promise, if everything goes as planned, we�ll tell you what�s been going on.�
Crys headed out the door, grabbing her jacket, and I followed, hands shoved deep in the pockets of my black slacks. I paused at the door, wanting to say something more, but unable to think of anything intelligent, and, just as important, Edward-y. When I finally got out to my rented red Jeep, Crys was already settled.
She looked at me as I got in, amusement playing across her face. She adjusted her glasses, arching her eyebrows. �Well, well, well.� She cleared her throat dramatically, then chuckled slightly. �Where shall I begin? A-ha. Eddy an� Anita, sittin� in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G�� I gave her my best I�ll-kill-you withering glare and she dissolved into laughter in the face of it. At times, she is so intelligent and mature, but sometimes, she reverted to her childish tendencies. When she was able to contain herself five minutes later, she sat back in the seat, glassy-eyed, and wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes. The rest of the ride was passed quietly, but every so often, she�d glance at me and giggle almost soundlessly, clutching her stomach and shaking her head against the seat back. I must admit _I_ was at the point of cracking up by the time we pulled into the parking lot of the St. Louis court complex.
*~*
We had to wait 30 minutes because a contested custody case ran over, but we didn�t complain because it gave the girl time to splash water on her face and when she came out, she looked fresh, dazed, and happy. I pulled my Ted face out of my bag of tricks right as the bailiff came to tell us we were up. I noticed Crys straighten, suddenly nervous. My hand wrapped around the back of her neck and I pulled her close. Leaning down to her, I whispered, �Just like we planned. It�ll work.� Together, we walked into the large room, my hand on her shoulder, her crutches creaking every so often.
*~*
Three hours and two giant ice-cream cones later, we were coming through Anita�s door, a blank look on my face, Crys looking upset, staring at the toe of her cast. Rio was instantly on her feet, then sat back down when he saw who we were. �So, how�d it go?� Anita called, glancing at us. �Oh. Not well, I take it?�
AT that point, Crys could no longer help herself. Her eyes were dancing with barely contained joy when she looked up at me, but the rest of her mask was still in place. When I gave her a proud nod, that dissolved also. She hopped up and down on one foot toward Anita, leaving me to set her crutches aside. All the while, she was repeating, �It worked, it worked, it worked�.� She came to a stop in front of her, staring her right in the eyes, easy since they�re the same height. �It worked. Me an� Eddy- They said �yes�!� At this, Crys began jumping again, ecstatic.
Rio had caught onto the enthusiasm and was staring at us with his tongue hanging out and his tail wagging. I expected him to try to bowl her over like he�d done the first day he came home, but he stayed where he was. I smirked at the perplexed look on Anita�s face as she tried to make out what had just been said. Nay other time, I would have let her worry through it, but the kid was making me ill with all of her jumping. Besides that, I�d had a hard time deciphering 6-year-old Becca�s babbling at times, so I sympathized. I came up behind the kid and wrapped my arms around her waist, then straightened. Her bouncing stopped because her foot was no longer on the ground, but she was still as enthused as before.
I was about to explain when I felt a tug on my pant leg. When I looked down, I found that Rio had a piece of my slacks in his mouth, glaring up at me. I�ve been reading dogs for awhile and I knew if Crys screamed, I�d loose a nice chunk of my leg, and if I tried to run with his master, I�d loose that piece of cloth he was holding onto, and _then_ part of my leg. When I put Crys�s foot back on the floor, Rio let me go, but didn�t back off.
Crys whispered reassuring words to her guard dog until he sat calmly and I felt comfortable enough to continue. Jeez, that dog worries me sometimes. �What she was trying to say was that I, Ted actually, have legal custody of her. The courts will check up in three months, but we can go to Santa Fe and get out of your hair.�
My kid grinned again, but was able to stop herself from jumping. Anita looked shocked and ready to fall over with the slightest nudge. After two tries, she found her voice. �You�re going to be her, hell, her _dad_?! How? I mean, bounty hunter, the only thing you�re _legal_ for, isn�t exactly the most stable profession of the prime idea of what the states want in the guardians of impressionable, young people. And, _and_, what does Donna think about this?� With that, she flopped down on the couch, trying to look cool and collected, yet failing miserably under my gaze. She doesn�t realize that I can read her like a book.
I walked slowly to the couch, Crys hobbling along calmly beside me. For the time being, I had Anita in the palm of my hand, and I was going to draw it out. I took a seat, not at the far end but not right next to her, then Crys sat between the highly perplexed woman and myself. The kid sat sideways, leaning her head against my chest and giving Anita a contented smile. I stiffened briefly, not used to the contact as myself, but relaxed quickly.
Satisfied that I�d drawn it out as long as I could without risking bodily harem, I began. �Yes, I�m basically going to be her dad. As to how, I had Jean-Claude pull a few strings,� my voice betrayed my feelings about _that_ little arrangement. Crys gave me a look that said not to badmouth one of her favorite vamps. Clearing my throat, I continued, �That, and Crys convinced the judge that even if she isn�t old enough to choose her own guardian, she _is_ smart enough. As to what Donna thinks of this, well, she doesn�t know.� I couldn�t keep in the low chuckle that came with the look on Anita�s face. It was not only from these revelations, probably, but the fact that I actually shared stuff willingly. The shocks, they just keep a� coming.
Crys piped, �Oh, don�t worry, �Nita. Eddy said that she�s already got 2 kids, plus 2 dogs that I�m sure Rio will love playing with. He also said that me an� Peter will probably get along good �causa we both had strange beginnings. Ain�t that whatcha told me, Eddy?�
Ruffling the kid�s hair, I replied simply, �Sure is.�
Te four of us, including the dog, sat just like that, thinking our own thoughts for a long while. I was contemplating the permanent change in my life that this hailed. People in my line of work don�t make good spouses or fathers, especially fathers. I�d never planned on having kids, until Donna, Peter, and Becca. Even with that, the kids kind of came along with the package. But today, I became a dad because I wanted to. Every time I recalled that, I got a bit scared, but then I�d look at my new daughter and see how tough she is and the feeling leaves me.
Regretfully, I broke the silence, �Anita, allow us to take you to dinner, for what you�ve put up with. We�ll be leaving in 2 days, only because some paperwork needs to be done or it�d be sooner. I know Crys will miss you though. Hell, the mutt down there will miss you,� a thought flashed in my brain, one that I didn�t give words. /I�ll miss you too./ �We could go to some resterant, then catch a movie, big screen. What do you say?�
The woman in question sighed, as if I�d asked for her eternal soul instead of dinner, then nodded. �Great,� I said, hopping to my feet. /Why are you suddenly so happy about going to dinner? It couldn�t be the company, / a little voice, maybe my conscience, piped from the back of my brain.
Never, I argued back.
/And talking so much? / Inwardly, I beat up the little creature that keeps feeding me questions like that. Aloud, I continued without missing a beat, �Let�s leave at 5:30. Now, if you�ll excuse me, I�ve got lots of phone calls to make if we�re ever going to leave.�
With that, I headed to my room, but stopped in the hall, out of sight, but not hearing. Anita said, �Do you know where we�re going?�
/Now you�re eavesdropping? / Apparently, the questioning creature is invincible, but I just ignored him.
�I have no idea. But I have a feeling it won�t have hamburgers or much of a kids� meal. And,� at this point, I heard the familiar squeak of her crutches, which she must�ve gone to get, �I think it might be the type of place for soul-mates.�
She left Anita sputtering as she headed toward the kitchen, probably for a drink. I went the rest of the way to the bedroom, smiling the whole way. Even I can�t leave Anita lacking words that badly. Having grabbed my cell phone and travel phone book for the St. Louis area, I perched on the edge of the bed, ready to call U-Haul and Crys�s doctor, among others. Then that stupid little voice came back with a vengeance. Times like these, I think I�m going insane. /The kid�s right, isn�t she? A place for soul mates? Ha! Anita would never look at you like that. Besides, you�re engaged. Next you�ll be saying you don�t want to hunt her anymore. /
*I don�t, * I thought back fiercely. *Not really. Crys would never forgive me. *
/You�ve gone soft, allowing emotions to get in the way, Undertaker. /
Opening the phone book, I muttered the phrase that always worked. �Shut up, Van Cleef,� then added, �I think I want emotions again.�
~( 8>