Jessica's keys jingled against the dimly illuminated lock. The lone hallway light soldiering on in a sea of its fallen brethren. She pushed the door which opened with a reluctant groan.

She stepped inside and was followed by Nikki who squished with each step. The pair was thoroughly soaked from a torrential downpour that caught them on their return trip from club Venus.

"I wish we could have gone back for your car, " Jessica groaned.

Nikki grunted in response as she fought to pull her wet skin tight jeans off. She tugged, pulled, and shimmied in a desperate attempt to free herself from their hold. She was quickly losing the battle as her thong was dragged downward, exposing her feminine bits.

Jessica paused for a moment to admire the view. She never considered herself bisexual but she had to admit, Nikki was quite attractive.

"So, how should we do this demon power training?"

"Let's worry about it in the morning, " Nikki said as her bare feet padded against the linoleum floor. She had given up the war against her clothes and simply stripped bare naked to embark on her quest for a towel.

"It's already 4AM..." Jessica said as she read the microwave clock.

"We'll be fine, " Nikki came back with an overabundance of towels. "Just a few hours of sleep and we'll get right to it."

"Okay,... but just a few, " she yawned. "Sleep well, Nikki."

"You too, Jess."

Jessica welcomed the warm embrace of her bed. The soft threads caressed her skin as she gently drifted off to sleep. The worries and problems of the day were like a bad dream lost to her mind's fog.

Then she was awakened by knocking that emanated from the front door. With a defiant groan, she tore herself from the comfort of her bed and shambled toward the door.

"Jess, sweetie are you home?" A familiar feminine voice chirped from the other side of the door.

"You expecting company?" Nikki rubbed her eyes and sat up on the couch as her blanket fell which exposed her bare chest.

"Did you sleep naked?" Jessica asked as she peered through the peephole to see her mother waiting on the other side. "It's my mom..." she said still groggy.

"Oh shit, it's my mom!" Jessica exclaimed with panic.

"Jessica? Is that you?" Mrs. Loving wiggled the handle of the door. "It's your mother. The door is locked can you let me in?"

"What happened to your hair?" Nikki asked suddenly more awake than she was moments before.

"What do you mean-" Jessica trailed off as she stared in the mirror at her former rich chocolate brown hair now which had turned a bright fiery red overnight. Her hands gently patted down her scalp in the hopes it was only a wig to discover two small pointed lumps nestled at the top of her head. "What is this!?" She cried out

"It looks like horns," Nikki leaped up from the couch, fully exposing her naked body. Her foot got caught on the blankets as she tripped and fell to the floor with a loud crash. "Ow!"

"No, no, no! This isn't happening. Hurry go get dressed!" Jessica hissed under her breath. She scooped up their still-wet clothes from the night before and ran about like a headless chicken as she tried to find a place to hide the evidence of their night.

"Jessica? Are you okay in there? Should I call the police?" Mrs. Loving called out.

Nikki staggered to her feet and bolted for the bedroom. Her pale bottom streaked across the room like a shooting star.

Jessica in her panic shoved the wet clothes into the dishwasher and slammed the door shut. Next she quickly scoured the closet and tightly pulled a beanie over her head.

"Okay just gotta play it cool," she muttered under her breath as she unlocked the door and opened it. "Hey, mom!" She exclaimed with a forced grin.

"Oh Jess, you dyed your hair," Mrs. Loving said as she reached out to rub a few strands between her thumb and forefinger.

Jessica pulled back from the unwelcomed touch. "Felt like I needed a change," she shrugged. "Why are you here?"

"Can't a mother come and visit her daughter?" She asked taken aback. She brushed a few stray hairs back behind her ear and walked inside, "You wouldn't answer your phone so I came by to check on you."

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"My phone?" Jessica reached into her pocket. The device refused to respond, its battery long since dead. "Oh. Yeah, I've just been busy."

"Your father misses you," Mrs. Loving said as she sat down on the couch. She raised a brow as she pushed the abundance of towels to the side. "Don't you have blankets or throw pillows?"

"The towels were because-" Jessica began to say before she decided to keep quiet. She shut the door and nervously rubbed her hands together. "Where's dad?"

"He's working at the ranch. A calf was born last night and he couldn't stray too. He sent you a letter," Mrs. Loving smiled as she held out a crisp clean blue envelope.

Jessica took the letter with a raised brow, it smelled of lavender. She opened it and quickly recognized her mother's ornate handwriting, a large 'get well soon' drawn onto the page. She pursed her lips in an attempt to stifle a sigh.

"When are you coming back?"

"I'm not some decrepit dying woman. I can still live my life!"

"But you are dy-" Mrs. Loving began to say but stopped herself short. "We miss you. I just want you to come back home."

"And what? Be free labor for dad on that stupid ranch? Jessica raised her voice in defiance.

"Hey," Nikki called out from the doorway of the bedroom wearing a baggy t-shirt and sweatpants. She offered a half smile and a wave. "Been a while, Jessica's Mom."

"Oh, you didn't tell me you had company over!" Mrs. Loving exclaimed. "Nicole, right?"

"It's actually, Nikki," she said with a subtle roll of her eyes.

"Ah, you want something to drink mom?" Jessica asked as she walked toward the fridge.

"Oh yes!"

Jessica opened the door and bent over to peer inside. She realized her jaw was clenched from her nerves running thin. She reached out to grab a can of root beer as frost began to quickly envelop its surface. Within seconds it was frozen solid.

"Oh!" she yelped as she dropped the can to the floor with a thud. Her eyes fixated on the cool frosty air that wafted from her fingertips. Strangely she couldn't feel the cold.

"Is everything okay?" Mrs. Loving scooted to the edge of the couch.

Nikki watched wide-eyed as she made eye contact with Jessica. She took a step toward Mrs. Loving and spoke up, "So how have things been on the ranch?"

Jessica heard her mother begin her spiel about ranch life but she tuned it out. She reached for another can and had a similar experience. Frost quickly covered its form and left its contents solid as ice within the blink of an eye.

Bhem's words echoed within her mind. Right now your power is most likely tied to your emotions. "Shit..." she muttered through clenched teeth.

"Is everything okay?" Mrs. Loving peered toward the kitchen.

"Ah, we're actually out of drinks!" Jessica turned around quickly as she pressed her hand into the small of her back.

"Oh yeah. I drank them all. Sorry!" Nikki lied through her teeth.

"Nikki, can I speak with you for a moment?"

"Sure?" she said hesitantly as she followed Jessica into the bedroom. Mrs. Loving offered a concerned glance and folded her hands in her lap.

Jessica quickly closed the door behind them and held out her frost-covered hand. "We have a problem. It won't stop!"

"Can't you just turn it off?" Nikki asked.

"If I could I would have done so already!" Jessica exclaimed as she began to hyperventilate. Then her eyes fell upon the alarm clock on the nightstand.

2:00 PM

"Oh god..." she pointed at the clock with a quivering hand. "How did we oversleep so much?"

Nikki followed her gaze and gasped. "Oh shit. We've wasted half the day already! We gotta get your mom out of here."

"Right! What do we tell her?"

"Umm, we could say you gotta help me pick up my car or something."

"Yeah, that's good!" She nodded and reached for the door and opened it.

Much to Jessica's horror, Mrs. Loving stood by the front door with Behm. She turned and smiled sweetly, "Oh Jess! There was a knock on the door so I decided to let your friend inside since you were busy."

Behm offered a mischievous grin as his swollen belly lead the way into the apartment.