Suddenly A Succubus
Chapter 28.3

“Vee! Thank fuck!” Amara said, running closer to Vee. Once she’d closed the distance, she saw that Vee was wearing a pair of flannel pajama pants and a tight, spaghetti-strap crop top. Amara had seen Vee in similar outfits before, usually at sleepovers, and she wondered if Vee had also been transported her in her sleep. The small top made it crystal clear that Vee was in fantastic shape, but Amara was too focused on their confusing situation to care. “Do you know what’s going on?”

Once Amara closed the gap between them, Vee sighed in frustration. “Why is it that every time something weird happens, you’re right in the middle of it?” she asked.

“I’m sorry, are you blaming this on me? Why am I always your scapegoat?”

Vee started walking, and Amara kept pace beside her as they continued talking. “No, that’s not… look, I’m sorry, okay? I’m not blaming you; I’m just confused and tired. I’ve been exploring this place all day, trying to find out what’s happening, and I’m beat.”

“Uh huh, sure,” Amara said, rolling her eyes. “You probably just haven’t figured out how to pin this on me. Give it time, I’m sure you can put something together.” The girls locked eyes, and Amara saw a strange look on Vee’s face. It was almost a look of surprise, but the moment passed so quickly, Amara couldn’t figure out exactly what it meant.

They walked in silence for a bit before Vee spoke up again. “What about you? Did you find anything?”

“Not really. I visited the magic circle under Lysander and it was glowing a bit, but I didn’t check the other circles. I’m not sure if the glowing means anything, that was always Tessa’s job. Although, the illusory wall that’s supposed to keep it hidden was gone, which was odd.”

“How many circles are there?” Vee asked. “I never saw any other than the big one in their headquarters.”

“Oh, there’s a bunch, and they’re all hidden in different ways. Lysander, Brandt, the Science Building, the Cafeteria… that’s what I can remember off the top of my head. There might be more for all I know.”

“Probably something we should look into at some point,” Vee said, covering her mouth while she yawned. “Oh, by the way, does your apartment look like the rest of campus? Gray, lifeless, empty?”

“Yup. Why?”

“Shit. I was afraid of that.” Vee paused, seemingly wrestling with herself over whether or not to continue speaking. “Amara… do you remember those wards I set up around my apartment?”

“Oh, you mean the wards you tricked me into walking into? That electrified me and threw me across the hallway? When all I wanted to do was ask for your help?” Amara scowled; her words laced with bitterness. Vee winced slightly, then nodded and continued talking.

“I… deserve that. Look, you caught me off guard back then, it was my first day back, and—”

“Yeah yeah, it’s not your fault, it’s mine for showing up, I know the drill.”

“That’s not what I was going to say!” Vee said, her voice raising slightly. “I didn’t mean for the wards to attack you, I promise. I’m sorry that happened, and… last week, I made some modifications to them. It should be safe now.”

“Wait, hold on,” Amara said, her pace slowing. Her tone grew more playful as she continued talking. “Is this what I think it is? Are you inviting me back to your place?”

“I mean… yeah, I guess,” Vee said sheepishly. “Look, your apartment is like the rest of campus, that means you don’t have food and water. The wards I set up around my apartment counteract the energies of this place, so I have all the supplies we’ll need to stay alive while we look for a way back. Our best chance at getting home is to work together.”

“Well, if it’s a matter of life of death, I suppose I could crash with you for a few days. You sure I won’t stink up the place with all my hellfire and brimstone?”

Vee sighed in defeat. “You’ve been spending too much with Tessa, she’s rubbing off on you.”

“We’re actually both rubbing each other. Quite frequently, might I add.” Amara giggled to herself as Vee groaned, and soon after they arrived at Vee’s apartment. It was immediately apparent that Vee was telling the truth; her door was solid, colorful, and sharp, nothing like the rest of the doors on campus. Vee unlocked the entrance and walked inside, gesturing for Amara to follow.

Amara hesitated. Memories of being flung across the hallway returned, and she was nervous about suffering a similar fate today. With a deep breath, she moved the tip of her tail closer, letting it cross the threshold. She braced herself for disaster, but several seconds passed without any Enochian flares. With a sigh of relief, Amara stepped into the apartment.

The entire apartment was full of life, with vibrant colors and clear signs of Vee’s daily routine. A bowl of cereal sat on the breakfast counter, and several dirty dishes were piled in the sink. Even the air felt healthier, and it made Amara realize just how heavy the rest of campus had felt.

Other than a strange tingling sensation, there were no indications that Vee’s wards were planning on attacking her.

“Well I’ll be damned, you were telling the truth,” Amara said. In the time it had taken her to summon to strength to enter the apartment, Vee had moved to a linen closet and pulled out two heavy fleece blankets. She wrapped one around herself and held the other one out for Amara.

“Here, this should help with the cold.”

“Cold?” Amara asked, tilting her head in confusion.

After a brief pause, Vee spoke again. “Right, succubus. I’m never going to get used to this…” She put the blanket back in the closet, then moved to the living room and sat down on the couch. Amara joined her, though sat on the far end of the couch just in case.

“So, what’s the plan?” Amara asked.

“I don’t know, Amara. I was wandering campus all day, trying to look for hints of… I don’t know, anything. Other people, portals back home, something like that. Spending all that time outside drained me; I’m cold, I’m tired, and I need to rest. Maybe tomorrow we can start another search?”

“Sounds good to me." Amara said. “Still, I’m nowhere near as tired as you. What about food? You hungry?”

Vee nodded quickly, pulling her blanket even tighter. “We should probably eat the stuff in the fridge first. If food can go bad here, that’ll be the first to go.”

Amara jumped up, moving to the kitchen and happily digging through the fridge to look for ingredients. It took several minutes to decide on a meal, and she started prepping everything while Vee continued shivering on the couch. As comfortable as Amara was, her inner fire keeping her warm while she happily prepped her lunch, she could tell there was a palpable tension between the two of them.

“So… Vee,” Amara said, pausing to let the angel look over at her. “What’s that short for?”

“You mean my name?” Vee asked.

“Yeah! Like, Victoria, Vanessa, something like that?” As they talked, Amara used her tail to cut up ingredients.

“C’mon, I told you when we first met, it’s not short for anything.”

“Okay, but back then I wanted to make a good impression, so I dropped it. But, seriously, there’s no way your parents just named you Vee.”

“Well, they did, so you can drop it.” Vee turned away, pulling her hands to her mouth to try and warm them up. “Apparently you’re not worried about making a good impression anymore...”

“Back then we were friends,” Amara hissed.

The conversation stopped, the only noise in the apartment the sound of Amara finishing lunch. She’d put together two sandwiches using a combination of deli meat, cheese, and a pepper she found in the fridge. She held a sandwich in each hand, slowly toasting them to crisp the bread and melt the cheese, and her tail grabbed two drinks from the fridge. When she finished, she split the food between two plates, along with a collection of chips she found in a cabinet, and walked over to the couch.

“Here,” Amara said plainly. She sat down on the other side of the couch, happily digging into her food as she watched Vee start to eat as well.

The angel bit into the sandwich, the toasted bread crunching under her teeth, and Amara swore she saw a hint of appreciation in her eyes. “Wait, is the stove working? How did you do this?”

Without saying anything, Amara held up her hand, letting some embers dance across her palm. “I haven’t used a stove in weeks. I also didn’t know which knives were clean, so I used my tail. Is that a problem?”

Vee hesitated, her eyes lingering on Amara’s bladed tail. “N-no, it’s… it’s very good, thank you.”

She’s being weirdly nice for someone who’s been avoiding me all week.

Other than the sound of toasted sandwiches and crunching chips, the apartment stayed silent. Amara couldn’t think of anything else to say, and she was still trying to figure Vee out. She was being nice, apologizing, and had even welcomed Amara into her home after altering the Enochian wards. Those certainly weren’t the actions of someone who didn’t want to be friends.

After both girls had finished up their food, Vee finally spoke up. “So, maybe tomorrow we should check out the other circles? I’m not sure where they are, but you seem to.”

“Sounds like a plan. The faster we can escape this, gray, lifeless void, the better,” Amara groaned, leaning back on the couch. “Where do you think we are? The Dreamscape? A part of Hell?”

Vee looked at Amara, surprise on her face. “Amara, this is Purgatory.”