Suddenly A Succubus
Chapter 35.1

Although Purgatory was still as lifeless as ever when Amara woke up, it was hard to shake her renewed sense of vigor. Her inner fire was roaring, and she’d slept fantastically, all because she’d finally fed yesterday. Twice, in fact. After so long without sex, suffering in silence as her body slowly withered away, she finally felt like herself again.

Thinking back, however, it was hard to ignore the sharp sense of guilt in her stomach. In her desperation, she’d tried to force herself on Vee, and she still felt sick when she thought back to what had happened.

Vee seemed okay with everything, and the feeding had happened on her terms, but Amara still felt like she’d forced her friend’s hand.

Perhaps most surprising was Vee’s reaction immediately after. Not only had she tried to talk to Amara, but she’d helped her through her panic attack. Vee had cradled her hair, rubbed her back, and reassured her that nothing had gone wrong during the feeding. Had it really only been a few days since they’d started mending their friendship? Amara was shocked at how quickly they’d fallen back on old habits, rediscovered the friends they’d been before Amara’s transformation had ruined everything.

Although, even back then, they’d never cuddled quite like this.

In their sleep, Amara had become the little spoon again, with Vee hugging her tightly around her waist while their legs wrapped around each other. Unlike last time, however, Amara was no longer starved for sex, and she was able to appreciate the friendly affection. Even though it had happened unconsciously, it still felt meaningful.

With her body no longer revolting against her, Amara happily settled in to enjoy the moment while it lasted. Everything in Vee’s bed was incredibly soft and comfortable: the pillows, the blankets, and especially the angel.

She closed her eyes, just for a moment. When they opened, Vee was suddenly standing in front of the closet, pulling on a new shirt.

“Vee? Shoot, how long have you been up? Why didn’t you wake me?” Amara grumbled. She sat up slowly, her body protesting the sudden movement, and a series of pops and cracks traveled down her back.

“Are you kidding? Why would I disrupt the first real sleep you’ve gotten in days?” Now fully dressed, Vee moved to sit on the foot of the bed.

“Well, ‘cuz… alright, I’ll give you that one. Honestly, I feel amazing, I’m so happy I was able to feed on Nick yesterday. I can tell I’m not quite full to bursting, but it’s way better.” Amara slowly stretched out her tail, then quietly spoke up again. “Look, about yesterday, I—”

“You already apologized, Amara. And even if you hadn’t, I think your panic attack made it more than obvious.”

“Okay, yeah, but—”

“Hey,” Vee said, her words soft but commanding. “Don’t forget, we were friends for more than a year before… you know. Yes, a lot has changed, but I still see the person you were back then. Which means I know that you’re going to spend weeks constantly apologizing, even though it’s already water under the bridge. It happened, we worked it out, and now it’s done. I’m happy I was able to help, and no one got hurt. End of story.”

Amara didn’t know what to say. Everything Vee said made perfect sense, even if it was weird to think about. It was strange to remember that Vee knew her so well when they’d spent the last few months growing further and further apart. “I guess I hadn’t thought about it that way. Tessa looks at me and sees a completely different person, even though I feel like I’ve just been slowly revealing the me that’s been there the whole time. It’s weird to think that, after everything we’ve been through, things might actually go back to normal. I think a part of me had given up on that ever happening.”

“How about we make each other a promise,” Vee said, inching closer. “We both stop lingering on past mistakes. It’s us against the future, whatever it throws against us.”

Amara giggled. “I like that. Us against the future.”

Both girls leaned in for a hug, sinking into it perhaps more than was necessary. When they pulled back, Vee took a deep breath, then spoke up again. “Although, for that to happen, there’s something I need to say.”

A knot suddenly grew in Amara’s stomach. Was something wrong? Had feeding on Vee somehow hurt her? “U-um, is everything okay?”

Vee turned to face Amara directly, crossing her legs underneath her as she pivoted. She reached out, grabbed Amara’s hands, and held them tight before looking into her eyes. When she spoke, her words were strangely formal, as if she’d practiced them before. “Ever since we met last year, I’ve considered you my best friend. I didn’t hesitate for a second to run to you after Derek reported me, and I almost told you everything. About being an angel, about there being a demon on campus, all of it.”

Amara squeezed Vee’s hands tight. “I had no idea. What stopped you?”

“I’ve never been fond of my heritage. I was scared to say it before, but here, in Purgatory, with you… I’ve always felt trapped. I’ve never felt like I mattered outside of my divine bloodline. But that wasn’t the case with you, Amara. You didn’t know about my heritage, yet you always made me feel good about myself. I didn’t tell you because I was scared I would lose that. I didn’t want my heritage to eclipse what we had. But then, when it mattered most, I’m the one that threw our friendship away. I’m the one that refused to look past your heritage, I’m the one that refused to listen when you tried to talk me down. I was a hypocrite, Amara, and the thought of what I almost did sickens me.”

“Vee, I… we both messed up that night, and—”

“Bullshit!” Vee said, cutting Amara off. “What did you do other than defend yourself? No matter which way I look at this, I refuse to believe that I’m not the one at fault. Which is why I need to apologize; properly, this time. From the bottom of my heart, Amara, I’m sorry. For everything. I’m sorry for being a shitty friend, and for giving up on you when you needed it most. I understand now how much I hurt you, and I want to make this better. What I want now, more than anything, is for you to stop blaming yourself for what happened. I certainly don’t.”

“Vee, what are you saying?”

“I’m saying that I forgive you, Amara.”

Amara gasped, her eyes welling up instantly. She pulled Vee in for another hug, this time using her wings and her tail to completely envelop her friend. “I forgive you too, Vee. We were both doing our best, and you had every right to think I needed to be stopped.” For a brief moment, Amara felt Vee shake, and wondered if she was also crying.

They held each other close, squeezing tight while they vented all their emotions from the last week. After a few minutes had passed, Amara felt comfortable releasing Vee from her nest of demonic limbs, and the girls smiled at each other.

“Us against the future,” Vee said, sealing the promise.

“Us against the future.” After a brief pause, Amara spoke up again. “There’s no way this ends once we’re home. I mean, best friends? An angel and a demon? There’s no way the universe lets that slide.”

“Ugh, that almost feels too big to think about. How about we focus on getting home today?” Vee slid herself off the bed, stretching her arms out behind her.

Amara followed suit, jumping off the bed before grabbing a snack from the dwindling pile of food in the corner of the room. “Actually, before we do, I’ve got an idea.”

“Should I be worried?”

“It’s just, we know the reapers are gathering in the quad, and we saw a glowing circle there too. You wondered earlier if they might be planning something, so shouldn’t we check while we’re still here? Now that I’m juiced up again, this might be the best chance we’ve got.”

“You know what? You’re absolutely right. We’re the only ones that know about the Gate, and it’s our job to keep the campus safe. Let’s do it!” Vee grabbed a snack as well, smirking as she slipped her shoes on.

Once they were ready, both girls left the apartment and started heading for the quad. The campus was as dull as ever, but it no longer intimidated Amara. With Vee at her side, and her energy back, she felt confident they could hold their own. As they walked, they swapped ideas about what might be happening on the quad, but also brainstormed ideas for fighting the reapers more efficiently. While the two girls had fought side by side a few times, they’d never fully committed to perfectly synergizing their abilities.

Every few minutes, Amara caught herself looking over at Vee, amazed at how far they’d come. Something about Vee seemed different, but it was hard to pin down exactly how. She almost seemed more relaxed, even compared to when they’d been friends before everything fell apart. Was it freeing for her to be open about her angelic heritage? Amara had always regretted hiding her identity from her friends, and she’d only known about it for a few months. Vee had been hiding for almost her entire life, the Church even telling her to do everything in her power to keep others in the dark.

Their conversation was forced to stop as the quad came into view. They did their best to hug corners and stay out of sight, as they still didn’t understand why the reapers had attacked them earlier in the week. Or, for that matter, why they’d seemingly stopped.