If he was being honest with himself, and truly, what demon worth his or her salt was ever honest, Orias was uncomfortable with being alone with such purity.  Zuureth, of course, had left for his next target, tasking his mentor with watching over Juniper, and protecting her if it ever came to that.  The fallen angel had just woken from a fitful sleep, judging by the sheen of sweat around her forehead.<br/><br/>Just prior to leaving for<i>Desert Satin</i>, Zuureth at first harbored numerous misgivings about leaving Orias alone with her.  Any doubts were immediately vanquished following his teacher’s admittance of being unworthy in her company.  Once he heard that surprising confession, he knew Juniper would be in good hands.<br/><br/>Apparently, an awake Juniper wasn’t so sure.  “Where did he go?” the fallen angel demanded, noticing Zuureth’s absence.  Before Orias could answer, however, she soon saw that something else was amiss.  Her wings.  She seemingly either lacked the energy or couldn’t be arsed to conceal her wings again.  The demon opened his mouth, but he verbally produced nothing.  She chose not to wait for his initial answer, flinging a second query at him, quickly followed by a third and finally, a fourth.<br/><br/>Now thoroughly flustered, as if feeling unworthy was not nearly enough, Orias eventually found his voice, though he struggled to meet her eyes.  “With your, uh, assistance, Zuureth is now on his way to<i>Desert Satin</i>, to eliminate another of his targets.”  There was no viable reason to close the distance between them, so he remained right where he was.  And even that was a little too close for his own comfort.<br/><br/>“Firstly, we mean you no harm,” the demon blurted, while looking into her eyes, then at her shoulder, then the couch, then at the floor.  It did not bother him in the slightest that he could not maintain steady eye contact with her.  An occasional glimpse into her baby blues was more than enough for him.  “My only duty is to assist and guide him into sending all those names on his body back to our Dark Lord,” he freely admitted.<br/><br/>What’s this?  Voluntarily producing vital information, yet he was never officially under interrogation?!  Was he under a spell of some kind?  Her puppet of sorts?  Perhaps, though he felt neither was the truth, nor did he feel like he was under her control in any way.  Orias couldn’t recall the last time, if ever, he stood in the presence of such purity, and that purity compelled him to hide nothing.<br/><br/>Still, Juniper seemed to be equally annoyed and suspicious as to why she was still in one piece.  “Again, we are not here for you,” he muttered, shrinking like a violet in way too much sunshine.  “And I do not know why Zuureth seems to be so drawn to you.”  She shifted, and the sound of ruffling feathers unsettled him like never before.  Orias glanced away, and remained that way until the majestic sound of her wings ceased altogether.<br/><br/><div style="text-align: center">&gt; &gt; &gt; &gt; &gt; &gt;&lt; &lt; &lt; &lt; &lt; &lt;​</div><br/>Zuureth staggered into the lobby, thankful that it was minimally populated.  He musta looked like a sight for sore eyes, because that’s exactly how he felt.  Only worse.  How long had he been gone?  Days?  Weeks?  No more than that, for sure.  And what was his room number again?  He sat on a dark blue chair, gathering his thoughts while also attempting to avoid bleeding on any of the lighter-colored furniture.<br/><br/>A 4 was in the three-digit room number.  He was sure of it.  Mostly.  The demon slowly made his way up to the fourth floor, preferring the stairs instead of possibly bumping into others in a cramped elevator.  In such an unwelcome scenario, stares were a given.  Exiting the stairwell, room #401 greeted him, confirming that he was indeed on the fourth floor.  Zuureth fished for the key to the room where Juniper and Orias were hopefully still awaiting his arrival.  Shit, he shoulda done that down in the lobby.  There in bright red were three digits: 4-1-3.  Completing an about-face, he headed back the way he just came.<br/><br/>Number on the door matching his key, he twisted the knob without using it.  Good, he thought, it’s locked, as it should be.  Orias woulda had a ton of explaining to do had the door been unlocked.  The key granting him access, a seated disgraced angel and a casually standing demon stared back at him, mouths agape.  His mentor swiftly moved to his side, arms ready in case of an unexpected breakdown.<br/><br/>“Da fuck, Z!” Orias exclaimed.  “You look like a gang of vicious, maniacal cherubs worked you over, and then came back for seconds!”  The bloodied demon with parts of his clothes in tatters looked at his guide first, then at Juniper.<br/><br/>“Yeah, well, how I look is, uh, pretty much how I feel,” he muttered, amazed that he was somehow still standing.  “Now if you’ll, um, excuse me, I’m gonna, uh, go lie down.”  Two steps later, and Zuureth collapsed.  Potentially prepared for such an occurrence, Orias caught his pupil before he could hit the floor.  Juniper just stared at them both with wide eyes.