The hilltop cafe

They stopped in front of a place called "The hilltop café".

Oliver parked his car in the driveway and the trio entered the café together. The place had rustic countryside vibes, less staffed and less crowded, exactly what they needed at the moment. Private and secluded, so that they would be able to have a decent conversation without anyone overhearing them. Lucas directly went to the booth in the far corner to take a seat as if he knew this place like the back of his hand.

Oliver and Lucas took up the seat facing the restaurant while Ana took the one opposite to them. As soon as they got settled a young waiter in his 20s came around to take their orders and Lucas ordered three cheese burgers with fries without having a look at the menu. Ana asked for an espresso additionally, to ease up the headache. She wondered if demons had cheese burgers and a normal diet or they'd sometimes like to drink human blood but she didn't dare to ask that out loud in front of the waiter.

Lucas and Ana stared at each other while Oliver was looking around anxiously, secretly expecting someone to pop out from the wall and attack.

She waited until the waiter left them alone and asked in a whisper, "So… is it safe to talk here?", unsure how to start the conversation.

Oliver turned to face her too but Lucas was the one who spoke up, "Yes…. I visit here often and it's private. Nobody bothers us..…"

"Oh…..", she stumbled around for words because of Oliver's unwavering gaze on her. He was keenly gauging her reactions more than the socially acceptable amount, making her feel self-conscious and awkward.

Lucas seemed to have understood the issue and diverted her attention, "So, Ana… Should we continue our previous conversation? You were telling me about the necklace.."

Ana ignored Oliver and focused only on Lucas, "Yeah… So this belongs to you?", she pointed at the pendant. If it was possible, she wanted to just remove and hand it over to them so that she could run away from all that.

"Um…. In a way.... Yes…. So, you are not able to remove it too?"

"No… I tried.. I'm sorry for wearing it in the first place…..", she said apologetically when Oliver sent a slanted look in her direction, "As you should be....", he noted.

"It was sent and addressed to me...", she fumed, unable to keep her anger on check. It was better when he was quiet and weird. The first time he opened his mouth, he got on her nerves.

Oliver scoffed and Lucas broke their quarrel, "Hey, hey, now let's not fight with each other…. Um, Ana, so does Katherine know about it too?"

"Yes. She was there when I received it. We decided that it might be from some unknown archaeologist who wanted us to check it out…. Because of....", she got distracted again as Oliver's full attention was fixated on her like she got on his nerves by her mere presence.

She cleared her throat and spoke again to Lucas, "I should've done a thorough examination at the museum but I took it home by mistake because it was addressed to me..….."

Lucas nodded when Ana popped the question out of the blue, "Are you really demons?". The simple question threw them off and they shared a knowing look with each other.

"Yes, Ana… Like I told..", he flashed a smiled assuming if it would help plead their case.

"So…. Um…. Why are you here then? Or…. Are all demons here on Earth?", she quickly added in a panic.

"No…. We were here for a mission, so we travelled and came down to Earth… Oliver had to go back, but because of some mishaps, he couldn't..", Lucas explained exactly the way they have rehearsed. He didn't want to reveal any more to Ana. She didn't need to know about the punishment or why they were cursed or anything about hell. The goal was to protect Ana and somehow let her live at the end of all this, Lucas tightly sealed his lips from revealing any more.

Ana didn't seem convinced but how could she judge something she'd never heard of. So, she shrugged it off and asked, "Once I'm able to give you this necklace, then you'll go back?"

"Yes… Hopefully"

"What about the museum or your business?", she asked innocently because wasn't Oliver supposed to be the only heir of such a big conglomerate? Or was it all just for show?

"We've prepared for the takeover of it, Ana… Your job is safe… You have nothing to worry…", Lucas reassured her hearing which Oliver scoffed again. He couldn't believe that she was still worried about money when literally her life was on the line.

He was very quiet up until then. Ana shot an annoyed look at him, "What?"

"Humans!", he made a disgusted face scoffing again scowling at her.

"What?", she asked once more making fists with her hands.

He was seriously annoying her and sometime she hoped to throw a punch putting a dent on that perfect face of his.

He came closer to her, yet again invading her personal boundaries, Ana had to bring all the courage she could muster to not pull back, "You.... are…. greedy, prideful, loathsome and disgusting….", he uttered each word slowly in a snarl making her reel back.

Ana had never met anyone in her life who hated her that much as Oliver did. Tears threatened to fall but she quickly regained her composure. She didn't know why he said that suddenly but it hurt her feelings.

Oliver went back triumphant and slouched on his seat with his lips pulled to one side in a smirk. Lucas who was unaware of what Oliver just told Ana looked confused between the both of them.

"What the hell is your problem with me anyways?", she yelled desperately, her voice breaking a bit.

Oliver shrugged in response and his smirk widened. He successfully got on her nerves. 

Lucas wanted Ana to be on their side to somehow help Oliver, as it was the only way out for them. After research, he realized that if they were able to remove the pendant from Ana and harness it's powers, he'd have a chance to perform the ritual again. He was very happy to find that and they needed Ana's help now more than ever.

He understood that the situation was getting out of hand and immediately pulled Oliver to his side.

"Ollie, why are you angering her? We need her …. Could you please play along?", he whispered to his friend.

"Don't worry, Luke….. Ana will do anything for you.…. Won't you, Ana….", Oliver said loudly making sure Ana heard the sarcasm in his voice and raised an eyebrow at her.

The tears brimming her eyes fell on her cheek. Ana chided herself for being such a crybaby especially in front of that asshole.

She quickly wiped it off with a napkin and looked down at the table.

Oliver got up after whispering something to Lucas, and went outside still smirking at his victory in riling her up.

"I'm sorry….", Lucas tried to take her hand, but she took it away. It was understandable that Lucas couldn't announce to everyone that he was a demon but for some unknown reasons, she felt betrayed by that.

Ana was quiet for a moment and the waiter arrived with their orders. He placed everything neatly in front of them and politely took his leave. 

"Ana…. He's just… I don't have any excuse, but I'm really sorry on his behalf, okay? Please…..", Lucas said as soon as the waiter left them alone hoping to be a source of comfort to her.

She nodded and brought back her poker face, convincing herself that this would all be over soon and she could get back at her life. She decided not to be emotional and pouty and focus on the solution instead, "What's next? What should we do now?", she finally asked the question which she wanted to ask from a long time.

"Um… Okay, so as I said, The pendant you are wearing is actually an artifact of hell. It isn't supposed to be here and I don't know how it reached you, but maybe it's in good time because using this pendant, Oliver will be able to go back.", he told her continuously but Ana only understood half of it.

"Okay… Wait a second… So, when you say go back, you mean hell?", she wanted to clarify and not assume it on her own.

"Yes…", he said.

"Okay…. He once tried going back right, why can't he try that again? Through the same method?", she asked as if any of this was logical.

"Hm…We can't, Ana… We can only attempt it on a particular auspicious day and the next one is not for another thousand years, we don't have that much time or patience… Instead, by using this pendant, we can recreate that day so that he'll be able to go back..", Lucas noted, clearly omitting the part that Oliver's insignia was a blood moon and only on that day he'd be as strong as his demon self to pull off the ritual again on Earth.

One thing he learnt through all these years living as a human was to never reveal your weakness to anyone.