I'm haunted by the distant past

“No.” Noah said sternly, he looked around, before looking her in the eyes. “Just tell me who you are or I’m leaving, and calling Charlotte and telling her you need to be executed.” It pained him to say it, because he did like her, but he had to. “Don’t push me, explain everything,” He pulled her close, as he had when he kissed her, but with aggression. “Now.” His head was throbbing, because of everything, he couldn’t quite focus on anything and trying his best to wrap his head around what was going on, and who this woman who steeled away into his home was.

Noah didn’t say anything for a second, confused. “I wouldn’t like the answer? Unless you’re one of triplets all living one life, I think any answer would be one I’d like, at least then it might shed some light on how you appear to be about five different people all at once.” Noah hated being lied to, being kept in the dark and someone who had might be growing… attached to, well that was even worse.

“Just be straight with me, that’s all I’m asking. If you’re not who you say you are, I think I’m at least owed the truth, and if I don’t like who you really are, then I’ll leave you alone. But you have to answer me at least one question.” His eyes scanned her to see if she was changing her defensive stance, which she hadn’t. “Who are you?”

Penelope sighed softly, her shoulders losing their defensive squareness. “That’s probably because I have lived more than five lives,” she told him as she secured her bag strap more on her shoulder, more for something to do than anything else. She has never really gotten close enough to anyone for them to question who she was. 

“What? Wait.” Noah walked after her, trying to match her pace, he grabbed her arm after the turned to an alley and stopped her. “Penny, what the fuck is going on?” He seemed confused, not angry, hardly understanding why she would be there. “That’s not a place we can go into. That’s a Strix only bar, it’s not in our jurisdiction.” Without raising his voice, Noah moved closer, trying to read her expressions.

“I think you need to explain something to me. You’re a Royal, but you’re drinking with the Strix, an antique dealer, but former mob-member, farm girl by birth but with weird cryptic tattoos around her tits, you act like a class act, but you fuck like a whore.” Noah looked in her, before looking away, and then back stealing another glance at those beautiful windows to her soul. “And then you just up and leave in the middle of the night.” He tried to wrap his head around the whole thing but couldn’t, or just didn’t want. to. “Who are you?”

Penelope knew that Noah wasn’t a stupid man. He may have looked all brawn but she knew better than to think he wasn’t intelligent. Which is why she knew that he was asking her this because he wanted to hear it from her. “Yes I’m aware of that but as far as they’re concerned, I do have jurisdiction there,” she replied to him, not enjoying the fact that he was closer to appearing hurt than angry. “I work undercover in the Strix,” she said eventually, giving him at least that,

Noah enjoyed walking home in the evening, in rain or in heat, he didn’t mind it. He smoked a cigarette and walked down the street, looking at his phone as he did so. He was lost in his emails, facebook, and news updates as he continues to power down the road as he often did. He barely glanced up when he walked into a person leaving a building. He glanced up, to apologise. “I’m sorry, I should have been looking –” His voice trailed off, seeing Penny before him.

“Penny… what are you doing here?” He said, glancing up to a notorious Strix bar, she was dressed differently, though the last time they met they weren’t wearing clothes. “Penny?”

Penelope hadn’t been moving more than a couple of seconds before she collided with what felt like a moving wall. Despite the apology, she was getting ready to snap at the man who had managed to make her drop her only half finished cigarette. That was until she realised she recognised the voice. Noah. Fuck. This was the last place that she needed to be seeing him because he wasn’t a stupid man, he knew this place didn’t have Royals in it. Her placement was only known to Charlotte and Henry so this really put a spanner in the works. Plus the last time they had been together, she had snuck out on him in the middle of the night.