Three Guests (Halloween reading winners) Part Two- Jonah

[Zodiac]

Zodiac nodded knowingly at his statement. "My Nana once told me, 'You can make a ton of money blowing sunshine up people's asses if all you are interested in is their money. Helping people is a totally different story'."

She imagined it was difficult for the man. From her few experiences with some from his bloodline, the expression 'They wouldn't say **** if there mouth was full of the stuff' came to mind. "Just let me know when you want to stop by or have me meet you somewhere. I bet you got some interesting stories as well to tell."

She escorted him back into the hallway and motioned for him to wait a moment. Zodiac went to where they had entered and peeked out through the beaded curtains into the main room of the shop. The night crowd was beginning to filter in now. A mix of mortals and not so mortals for now. In a few more hours, only their kind would be coming in, but she could not see asking Jonah to wait till then.

The gypsy returned to where he waited and motioned for him to follow her to the back. She paused in the break room to slip on a coat and saw Ginny sprawled out on one of the chairs snoozing away. "Don't mind her," she smiled at Jonah. "She is probably having one of her dreams of world domination again or something." A sharp squeak caught her ear as Stone Cold the owl demanded attention. "Oh, you not starving. You can wait a bit." she admonished the bird with a wag of her finger. "Speaking of stories, I should tell you his one evening."

Zodiac unlocked the back door and turned off the alarm as stepped out into the cold night air. She walked with the giant till she came to the sidewalk that separated her unit from Sundial's fish/pet shop's place. "That will take you back to the marketplace proper." she pointed the way, then slipped her hands into her pockets to ward off the chill. "I suppose I should say something deep in sage advice here, like 'Rome wasn't built nor did it fall in a day' or something like that but to me that is a 'sunshine up the backside' statement. 'First steps are the hardest' is what I will say instead, and you have already done those tonight." once again, she inclined her head to the man, then impulsively gave him a quick hug. "I Will have a warm mug waiting for you when you come back."

[Jonah]

"I think these nights, we all do." He paused as she indicated, confused for a moment at the interruption but as the sounds of the hustle and bustle filtered through the walls, he understood. Her actions tonight made it clear that she wasn't bothered by her appearance but she had mixed clientele so no reason for him to go scaring them off.

Following her to the break room, he shook his head at the human sprawled out in the chair. She seemed nice enough though a little rough around the edges. Not a bad trait to have though, running with the crowd that she did now. He made a mental note to watch out for her again. It was easy for a human to get in trouble in the streets and since she was affiliated with Zodiac...well, he looked out for those he trusted.

The shrieking owl made him flinch but his guide scolded it, trying to calm it. Maybe it was just excited to see her but he doubted it. Ever since he'd gone Necurat, all animals got skittish around him and that hadn't stopped since he'd quit. He tried to move as far away from the animal as he could to minimize the effect that he had on it but still answered her. "I look forward to it. He looks like he'd have an interesting one."

The cold washed over his skin but it felt nice to the big killer. He'd soon be underground again, hidden from the moon and the fresh air. Her quick hug surprised him but he patted her on the back to return the gesture. "You'll have to show me how to make it next time." A less forced smile formed on his lips as he tried to be friendly with her. "I'll probably be back soon just too learn that."

He grew more serious though the kindness in his eyes did not disappear. "I'm honestly very thankful for this. If you ever need anything that I can help with, don't think twice about calling." Nodding when he was sure she understood, he added his final goodbye. "Stay safe in the darkness, Zodiac." and turned to walk off in to the night.