Chapter Text
The Comfort of Monsters.
The Deal
Standing in the centre of a dirt crossroad near some run-down ruddy hotel outside of Princeton, New Jersey a woman waited for her company to arrive shrouded in the blanket of night. The gravel scuffed and the woman spun to face the noise, spine straightening and face smoothing out and erasing her earlier distress. Quickly swiping the tears from her eyes and staring resolutely into the glowing reds of the supernatural being that stood across from her and came to satiate his curiosity and seal a deal.
“I want you to make his recovery seem as natural as possible. Can you do that?” Knowing the demon would know who she was referring to, she didn't believe he needed to be named. She didn't know if she could. Driving out here into the middle of nowhere, he was all she could think about, after what happened at the hospital hours ago. Thinking about him brought her to tears and appearing weak in front of a demon was the last thing she wanted.
“Oh darling , for the right price I can do anything.”
At his accent the woman blinked in surprise. But didn't stop to think about the demon possession intricacies, she was here for a purpose, which was not to needle him on the finer points of being a supernatural creature.
“You're a demon. The price is my soul, in ten years.”
“Ten years for what you're asking isn't going to work for me. I’m not your average demon. I'm the King of the crossroads. You get four years.”
Her eyes narrowed into slits at the demon's counteroffer. Crossing her arms and clenching her jaw, she would play his game if it got her what she wanted.
“No. If I don't get ten, I want six.”
“Haggler, are we? Tell you what luv. I’m feeling generous tonight. I'll fix your boy toy; you’ll get your six years, and I get your soul and a favour . Does that sound agreeable to you darling?”
She rolled his words around in her head, as her eyes got used to the darkness seeing more than the demon's own glowing red forming a dark outline of a stout man slightly taller than herself with a clean-shaven face.
“Deal. But if it doesn't happen like you say it will, deal’s off.” Her frown turned into a sneer and the crunching of gravel sounded as she shifted her feet into a more comfortable stance of false confidence.
“You are aware of how Demon Deals work, yea sweetheart? Once the deal is struck, you can't just unstruck it. When we seal the deal– that's it. Whatever happens after the fact, isn't on me. I may be powerful but even I can’t control fate.” the demon smirked, watching amused as the woman tried masking her desperation while broadcasting her irritation with him.
The dark-haired woman scoffed at him in derision seeing through his false demure, baring her teeth as she got more frustrated with him.
“I find that hard to believe. You demons always find a way to veto Fate whenever a deal is made to save someone else.”
Now it was the demon's turn for mild irritation; he squinted his own eyes at her before it morphed into smug satisfaction at provoking a rise in the woman and settled on his bored businessman expression.
“Charming. Flattery, however, will get you nowhere in this case. Back to business. You are wasting my time.”
The woman sneered with an eye roll. “Places to be, highness ?”
The demon didn't rise to the bait but answered her, nonetheless.
“Matter of fact, yes. Souls to torture, deals to make and demons to govern. You know how it is. Are you satisfied with your deal?”
“What? Not going to kill me, for being a nuisance and be done with it?”
She was toeing that line very heavily. If he didn't know any better the demon would've thought, her suicidal. As it happens, he does know better, as one of the most well-informed demons in Hell, he knew why she was like this; the life she left did leave a lot to be desired, self-sacrificing saviour complexes run rampant in many Hunters no matter how far they try to run from The Life; once you're in the know, you can never go back.
“Is that what you want?” he asked.
For now, he would entertain her, if only, for his own amusement.
“But no, I just find myself invested in the outcome of this deal. Why do anything for this man? He’s rather prickly for a doctor.”
“He's a good man.”
He raised an eyebrow as she clenched up in stubborn defence of her boss.
“His methods and patients beg to differ.”
“It's his results that matter. He saves people. He's just in pain, and right now, he's dying.”
Rolling his eyes at her clear infatuation with a man that wouldn't do for her as she is doing for him right now. ‘Humans and their feelings’ he thought with contempt.
“He is a pain, you mean. You, for some unfathomable reason, like him. Or even more than that. Why? He's insufferable and a right bastard to you on a good day.”
“Why do you care, Demon? After this, we won't see each other until my six years are up. Or you call in the favour. We won't be acting all buddy buddy and hanging out when this is settled.”
‘Don't place any bets on that doctor, you just became a person of interest.’ Crowley smirked at his thoughts watching the good doctor squirm figuratively.
“I don't. You're right. But, like I said, I'm invested in your future. Call me Crowley , Dr Cameron. ”
Tensing briefly at her title she blew a curl from her eyes and leant forward, arms still crossed, and shoulder muscles coiled inward. She gave an exaggerated shudder, like House would have in her position (though he would have tacked on some snarky comment just to piss the demon off). But Allison wasn't House, and she knows demons.
“Scary. It's not like I put my ID in that box or anything. Remember what I said Crowley. Make his recovery look natural, I don't want any do-gooder hunters poking their noses where they shouldn't and stuffing up the deal. If he dies, deals off and you're a dead man.”
An empty threat, Crowley tutted internally the best she could do without a demon blade was exorcise him from his meat suit. Though that thought gave him pause, he was rather attached to this one, if she could do an exorcism from memory which he was uncertain of, but equally unwilling to test her skills, he wasn't going to risk burning up his favourite human pyjamas, so he let it slide.
“I had wondered about that particular ask, very clever. Fine. And we will meet again, before you expire, Doctor . It's a guarantee. A pleasure doing business with you. Now shall we seal the deal?” Crowley said, stepping into the immunologist's personal space preparing to mark her soul, only for her to initiate the kiss to his ever-growing surprise. She shoved him away before he could deepen it much to his shallow regret.
He watched her scrub her mouth with her sleeve and rolled his eyes.
“What? You don't like whiskey? Shame, figured you had taste.”
Frowning heavily in disgust Allison snapped at him unconcerned about the future prospect of face wrinkles her brothers would have teased her about if he could see her.
“Shuddup, Crowley. Deals done now fuck off. You taste like rotten eggs, not whiskey. Use a breath mint next time.”
“Oh ho, next time ? Eager for seconds are we Sweetheart?”
“You know what I mean asshole. I have to leave now anyway. I still have work tomorrow and I have to drive back to my apartment in Princeton. It's a long road and I’m only human. Meaning I need sleep.” With her deal done Allison started digging for the box, unwilling to chance anyone finding it and tracking her down (and she needed her ID).
Startling when she turned to find the British accented demon still standing behind her.
“What? Did you need a lift back to Hell? I'm not a taxi service and I don't pick up hitchhikers. Try again in six years.”
“Cute. No, maybe some other time. On better terms. I had the opposite in mind actually.”
“Fat chance of that happening. So, what is it? You offering to drive me highness? ” She was already walking back towards her car (a parting gift from her dad, when he sent her away, Allison couldn't bring herself to scrap the damned thing). She set a brisk pace and didn't intend to stick around for his response; their business had concluded, no need to prolong their parting.
House wouldn't be bleeding out when she gets back if the demon is good on his word as she'd heard from the grapevine. ‘A monster with integrity, pops would keel over at the thought of there being any sort of decent qualities in the supernatural.’ Allison scoffed internally, that would be the day.
“In a way. Only it's much quicker than that. Don't fancy a trip to the dry cleaners. Until we meet again, Doctor .” Crowley punctuated his words with a snap of his fingers.
The scenery changed and Allison found herself standing alone outside her apartment building in the rain, the crossroad demon nowhere to be found; her cream ‘67 Ford Mustang neatly parallel parked in its usual spot across the street. Miserable weather befitting a miserable night. Just what she needed after signing her soul away for someone who will never care about her.