Suddenly A Succubus

When Amara woke the following morning, she discovered she was a clingy sleeper. More than half her limbs were wrapped tightly around Vee, hugging her close while she nuzzled her head into her shoulder. Amara considered looking up at Vee, hoping to steal a kiss first thing in the morning, when she remembered her horns were still out. Without a good sense of where Vee’s head was, she opted to instead stay still, hoping to avoid waking her girlfriend up by bashing her in the face with thick demonic protrusions.

Instead, Amara took a deep breath, appreciating the subtle fruity scent of Vee’s deodorant before letting out a sigh of contentment. A quiet hum escaped her mouth as she settled in, listening to Vee’s heartbeat and appreciating just how lucky she was.

I wonder how I ended up like this. Wouldn’t it make more sense for Vee to snuggle up to me? Since I’m bigger?

Wait, no I’m not. Vee’s taller than me, I just feel bigger because I’ve got these massive wings and horns and stuff. We should probably set some time aside to figure out how cuddling works, I can’t imagine it’s easy to get comfortable around all the demon bits. It’s a miracle Vee didn’t banish me to the other side of the bed last night.

As if on cue, Amara felt Vee stir underneath her. She grumbled softly, then absentmindedly stretched out her legs before looking down. “Morning, love,” she said quietly, sleep still clinging to her words and slurring them slightly.

Now that Vee was awake, Amara reached up with her tail to guide her horns into a safe position. Now face to face with her lover, they happily kissed before Amara responded, “Good morning, gorgeous. How’d you sleep?”

“Amazingly,” Vee said with a smile. “You’re so warm, it’s fantastic. I've lost track of how many nights I woke up missing your warmth after Purgatory.”

Another kiss. This one took several seconds, and Amara gently caressed Vee's cheek as she savored the moment. “How did it take us this long to figure it out? Have we both just been dancing around our obvious attraction this whole time?”

Vee giggled before sneaking in another kiss. “God, knowing us? Probably.”

“It's a miracle we got together at all, honestly. It only took you nearly dying. Twice.” Amara briefly curled up even tighter against Vee, shrinking away from those terrible memories. Those thoughts were quickly dislodged by another question, however. “Wait, you're an angel. Can you do miracles? What even counts as a miracle?”

“Um, that's a big question,” Vee said. As she thought, she absentmindedly stroked Amara's horns. “I guess you could technically consider all my magic miracles, since it uses the power of Creation, but that ignores some common assumptions the Church has. Realistically, a miracle is considered an act of Divine power so immense that it reshapes some fundamental part of the world. My parents couldn't conceive, and a Miracle made it possible, as an example.”

“So you could theoretically make someone pregnant? Immaculate conception or whatever?” Amara asked.

“Fuck no! That's way beyond me.”

“Haven't you been getting stronger?”

“I mean, a little bit, but not by much. Plus, I still have no idea why that's been happening, and it's dangerous to attempt big magic without understanding how it works.”

Amara shuffled higher and kissed Vee on the cheek. “Well, you're my miracle now, so who cares how it all works.”

With a playful laugh, Vee kissed Amara back. “You're adorable, I love you so much.”

They kissed again, much more passionately, but were prevented from escalating their affection by a sudden noise. A sharp metallic clang echoed throughout the apartment, causing them both to freeze in surprise.

“The fuck was that?” Vee asked, instantly snapping to attention.

“It sounded like it came from the kitchen.” Amara reluctantly crawled off Vee and walked to her bedroom door, pausing only to manifest some pajama shorts and a comfortable tank top.

After a quick look back at Vee, Amara slowly opened the door and walked out. She crept down the hallway, treading lightly to not make any noise, as she approached the kitchen. Someone was shuffling around, opening and closing cabinets, and she even heard the familiar beeping of someone turning on the oven.

With a sneaking suspicion of who this might be, she poked her head out of the hallway. Just as she thought, she saw a tall, curly-haired man muttering to himself while rummaging through the fridge.

“Nick?” Amara asked, abandoning her attempt to be sneaky.

He jumped up in response, banging his head on the freezer door above him. “Ow, fuck… Morning Amara! What’s up?”

“Why are you in my apartment?”

Nick tilted his head in confusion. “I let myself in all the time, you know this. I figured I’d get a head start on the big meal.”

Off to Amara’s right, from the couch in the living room, another voice spoke up. “How much do you wanna bet she doesn’t know what today is?”

Amara flinched in surprise at hearing Tessa’s voice and immediately jumped backwards into the hallway. At the same time, she also threw up an illusion to completely cover the walkway, blocking it off with a large blank wall.

“Huh,” Nick muttered, his voice slightly obscured by the illusion. “You know, I could’ve sworn there was more to this apartment.”

“Maybe the place is haunted,” Tessa suggested sarcastically. “Should we get Chloé in here to hunt for ghosts?”

The two of them laughed and continued talking, but Amara stopped listening. Instead, she ran back into her bedroom to find Vee.

“Is that Nick I heard talking?” Vee asked.

Amara nodded. “Yes! And Tessa! He comes over all the time when we have days off but I guess he decided it would be okay to bring Tessa over and they don’t know you spent the night! Then Tessa said today was special or something? What do we tell them?!”

Vee laughed quietly as she started picking up her clothes. “Well, that’s easy. We tell them we’re dating, we spent hours fucking like rabbits, and then fell asleep.”

“Right, yeah,” Amara muttered. “It’s not actually a secret, is it.”

“Unless you’re ashamed of me and want to keep this illicit affair to ourselves. Want me to sneak out the window and pretend I just got here?” Vee teased.

“Never!” Amara said, growing flustered as her face grew redder. “I just… wasn’t expecting them to be here when we woke up, that’s all.”

“As for today…” Vee grabbed her phone, unplugged it, then checked today’s date. “Holy shit. It’s Christmas!”

“What?!” Amara gasped. “Fuck! With everything that’s been going on, I never bothered to keep track of the calendar! Ugh, I didn’t get anyone anything, and there’s not a single decoration in my place, and—”

She was forced to stop talking when Vee grabbed her face and passionately kissed her. “Amara, love, it’s okay. I’ll take a quick shower, you can clean yourself with your hellfire, and then I’ll borrow one of your old sweaters and we’ll dress up for the occasion. Then we’ll tell everyone about us and have an amazing holiday with all our friends. Okay?”

With a deep breath, Amara nodded and kissed Vee one last time. “Okay, you’re right. That sounds nice. I put up an illusory wall, so you should be able to get to the bathroom without Tessa harassing you.”

“A whole wall?” Vee chuckled. “You’re such a bundle of nerves.”

As Vee grabbed her clothes and walked past Amara, she pinched her butt before jumping away to take a shower. In the meantime, Amara refreshed herself with a quick hellfire cleanse, then stood in front of her mirror cycling between outfit ideas to find the perfect fit for today. She ended up settling on black velvet leggings and a thick, fuzzy red sweater. Her tail effortlessly slid through the illusory clothes, though she’d demanifested her wings out of convenience. Her horns stood tall atop her head, and she gave herself a large red Santa hat, complete with two holes for her horns to poke through.

Another fifteen minutes later, Vee joined her in the bedroom, and they picked one of Amara’s sweaters to give her for the day. After another kiss, during which Amara giggled with excitement as she smelled her body wash on Vee, they laced their hands together and left the bedroom. With a deep breath, Amara pulled down the illusory wall and started talking.

“Hey, sorry about that, I—”

“I fucking knew it!!” Tessa shouted, leaping up from the couch. “I knew Vee was here! Didn’t I tell you, Nick? Alright, fess up, tell me everything! Out with it!”

Unable to hold back a smile, Amara felt herself blushing with excitement. “Well, um, yeah. Vee and I are a thing now. Like, we’re… y’know… dating.”

“AAH!” Chloé squealed in excitement, appearing in the middle of the room as she flew over to Amara and Vee. “Omigosh! You have to tell us what happened! I’ve always thought you two would make a great couple but I never wanted to say anything ‘cuz that would be weird but AAAH that’s so exciting!!”

“What happened?” Vee asked, pausing for a moment to think. “I mean, do you want, like, the whole story or what?”

“It’s pretty simple, actually,” Amara said, holding back a playful smirk. “We fell for each other.”

Vee groaned, then jokingly shoved Amara aside. “Ugh, you’re never gonna stop saying that, are you? You’re such an idiot.”

Amara giggled far more than was necessary for such an obvious pun, then wrapped her hands around Vee’s waist and pulled her close. “Yeah, but I’m your idiot, and now you’re stuck with me, so tough.” The two of them happily kissed, prompting another delighted squee from Chloé, before letting each other go. At everyone’s urging, the two of them moved to the couch to tell everyone what exactly happened between them, and by the end Chloé was completely sobbing because of how romantic she thought it all was. Tessa, despite having been caught blushing a few times during their story, accused them of being drama queens to try and hide her obvious investment in the story. In the end, after everyone had said their piece, they dispersed to try and properly plan a holiday celebration.

Vee, Tessa, and Chloé decided to make a quick shopping run to grab holiday decorations while Amara stayed behind with Nick to help with the food. He explained his plans for the meal, walking her through all the sides and entrées, and she immediately got to work prepping everything next to him.

They were in the middle of chopping vegetables when Nick finally spoke up. “You’re happy with her?” he asked.

“Happier than I’ve ever been, Nick,” Amara admitted. She leaned against him for a moment, the two pausing their food preparation to share in the moment. “She’s perfect. I can’t believe I didn’t figure out my feelings earlier.”

“I had my suspicions a few times, if I’m being honest.”

“What?! Why didn’t you say anything!”

“There was a lot going on!” Nick said defensively. “Unless you’ve forgotten, one of us happened to turn into a demon recently. Then the campus got attacked, what, three times in two months?”

“Alright, that’s fair.”

The two of them fell silent, leaning against each other in peaceful solidarity for a few moments before Nick spoke up again. “You had to be exaggerating that story, though. You seriously expect me to believe she spontaneously generated rainbows when the two of you kissed for the first time?”

“I’m not lying! It really happened!” Amara fumed. “She can prove it when she gets back. Jerk.” Sticking her tongue out, she pulled away from Nick and then resumed her food preparation.

Nick chuckled to himself as he reached up to mess with Amara’s hair, his hand grabbing her festive hat and playfully rubbing it back and forth. “Glad to have you back, Amara. I missed you.”

The next few hours passed in the blink of an eye. Nick and Amara had their hands full preparing the Christmas dinner, and everyone else returned from shopping with multiple boxes of holiday decorations for the apartment. They were sad to report they couldn’t find a full-size tree, and instead were forced to settle for a tiny, two-foot-tall tree designed for side tables.

Between Chloé’s flight and Tessa’s telekinesis, decorating the apartment took surprisingly little time. They hung garland and lights around the ceiling of the living room, as well as silver tinsel around the couches, television stand, and windows. They also set up the large collapsible table from Chloé’s charity, covering it with a bright red tablecloth lined with festive holiday imagery. Vee grabbed Amara’s Bluetooth speaker from her room to put on cheesy holiday music, even pulling Amara away from the food prep a few times so they could dance together.

Thanks to Amara’s control over fire, she and Nick were able to make significantly more food than a single oven would typically allow. By the time everyone sat down for dinner, they were treated to a spread of roast beef, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, roasted brussels sprouts, warm buttery biscuits, and several other sides that barely had room to fit on the table.

Amara sat sandwiched between Vee and Chloé, who was very excited to eat her first real meal since recovering her memories and body. She wasn’t technically sitting, of course, more hovering at an appropriate height, which Amara found delightful.

After piling her plate full of food, Amara was just about to take her first bite when a sudden pulse of energy shook the living room. Immediately identifying it as a planar anomaly, Amara jumped backwards over her chair and summoned her chitinous gauntlets just to be safe. In the back of her mind, however, she had a sneaking suspicion that this energy felt strangely familiar.

In the middle of the living room, on the opposite side of the loveseat, a burst of hellfire appeared. It hovered for a brief moment before cascading out further and further, receding with a flash of light and leaving only a single figure standing in the room.

“Mom!!” Amara vaulted the couch as she shouted excitedly, nearly tackling her mother to the ground as she threw her arms around her.

Evelyn jumped in surprise as she caught her daughter, even managing to spin her around once as they hugged. “Oh! Amara! Is everything alright? I got back as soon as I could, but I’m afraid I was… well, let’s say I was far away from any cell towers for a while there.”

Amara cocked her head in confusion. “What do you mean?”

Walking around the couch, Nick spoke up to clarify. “Uh, that was me, actually. I sent her a couple of texts when everything was falling apart. Thankfully, we all pulled through! Sorry to make you worry, Evelyn.”

“Oh, Nicholas, how I’ve missed you,” Evelyn said with a warm smile. “Come here, give me a hug.”

After watching the two of them hug, an idea popped into Amara’s head. “Wait! Mom, you’ve got to meet everyone! We’re all doing dinner together and you’re just in time!”

“What do you mean ‘meet everyone?’ I’ve already met all your friends, love.” Despite her confusion, Evelyn let Amara pull her closer to the table.

“Okay, yes, but also no. I mean, like, meet them for real! There’s been so much happening!” Amara gestured her friends closer before she continued. “Okay, so obviously you know Nick, and thankfully nothing crazy has happened with him. He’s still the same doofus he’s always been. However, I want to officially re-introduce you to Altessa Blackwood, certified witch!”

“I’m not certified, Amara, that’s not how witches work,” Tessa grumbled. “Not that it matters. Good to see you again, Evelyn.”

“Good to meet you again, since apparently that’s what we’re doing,” Evelyn chuckled. She silently offered a hug to Tessa, but the witch turned her down.

“It’s because now we don’t have to hide all our magic bullshit anymore!” Amara said in a huff. “Anyways, next up: Chloé Belmont!”

Next to Tessa, just in front of Evelyn, Chloé reappeared and sheepishly held out her hand. Upon seeing this, Evelyn gasped and held a hand to her mouth. “Chloé?! I thought you were…”

“Um, yeah, it’s a bit of a long story, but I got better! Mostly. We don’t actually know what I am, but, yeah, it seems to be okay!”

Completely disregarding Chloé’s extended hand, Evelyn jumped forward and tried to pull her in for a hug. She instead phased completely through Chloé, stumbling briefly. After resetting, Chloé initiated the hug, this time manifesting properly. “I have so many questions, Chloé, but… I’m so happy you’re here. I was heartbroken to learn what happened to you.”

“Thanks Mrs. Lamour,” Chloé said. After an extended hug, which seemed to go on longer than Chloé had expected, Evelyn pulled away. She quickly wiped something from her eyes, then looked to Amara in anticipation of the next reintroduction.

“Okay! Last, but certainly not least: Aurelius University’s very own guardian angel! Vee Bennett!”

Evelyn looked to Vee, smirked to herself, then knowingly looked back to Amara. “…And?”

“And…” Amara blushed heavily before adding, “and also my girlfriend.”

With a delighted squeal, one that sounded identical to Amara’s from earlier, she politely cleared her throat and offered a hug to Vee as well. She happily accepted, effortlessly pulling Evelyn in for a hug before saying, “It’s wonderful to see you again, Evelyn.”

“It should go without saying that I much prefer this outcome to all the others you two apparently narrowly avoided,” Evelyn said. “I’m so happy you two found each other. I’ve only been here for a few minutes, and I can already tell how happy you make her. Hopefully you feel the same.”

“Without question,” Vee said.

After they finished, Evelyn turned back to Amara. “Is that everyone? There are no other invisible friends floating around?”

“No, that’s everyone,” Amara said. “But what about you? You have to tell us all about what you’ve been doing! Actually, wait, hold on, you can tell us over dinner. Nick and I just finished and we were about to start!”

“It does smell delicious, dear, but there’s something I should do first,” Evelyn said. “Among other things, I managed to claw back a fraction of my previous strength. It’s imperative that I take this opportunity to read your soul before I lose this chance.”

Swallowing nervously, Amara nodded slowly. “Y-yeah. Okay, that’s probably a good idea. Um, will I feel anything?”

“You shouldn’t, but there’s always a chance you might. I can’t guarantee anything,” Evelyn said, inviting Amara to sit down on the couch. “Also, keep in mind that reading a soul is an incredibly revealing activity. I’m not just seeing if you’re Damned or not, I’m seeing… well, everything. Memories, feelings, instincts, all of it. If there’s anything you don’t want me sharing with the others, please let me know now.”

Amara shook her head. “No, I trust all of them with my life. I’m ready.”