Falling Together
Chapter 4: Crossed Wires
Once again Gabriel found herself staring in any direction Vignette wasn't in while the compassionate demon doggedly trained her own gaze on her. They continued in silence for a while, following the roads and sidewalks through their city that as they made the long journey back to their apartments.
Some help Satania turned out to be, the failangel internally grumbled, I mean, a date!? Really!? Like, sure, Vignette's nice and all, she allowed her head to droop as a small blush crossed her cheeks, and yeah, she puts up with my lazing, and she always comes to help me out even when I don't appreciate it, and she never gives up on me, and she's kinda cute...
She stopped short, her face bursting in an explosion of red as she turned on the spot, shooting a quick "I forgot something, go on without me!" at the now thoroughly confused demon walking beside her before dashing off. For a moment Vignette stood in confusion, unsure if she should chase after the angel before deciding to continue on like Gabriel had told her. Instead, she pushed on with a sigh.
I'm starting to think she's avoiding me, the demon thought. She reflected on her day at school, considering, Gabriel was avoiding me since this morning, so whatever caused this must've happened before then, right? Dawdling for a moment, unsure of what she ought to do, she finally resolved herself, deciding, I'll call Raphiel... she'll know what to do! With a bright smile, she added, she always does!
...
"Oh my~!" Raphiel declared, lowering a pair of binoculars as she covered her mouth with a hand in a vain attempt to keep her soft chuckles inside. "This has turned into quite the interesting situation!"
Shifting uncomfortably next to the deceptive angel, Satania said, "Why do we have to stalk them from the bushes?" She rustled the hedges she and Raphiel had hunkered behind to watch the mismatched pair's journey home. "We already know where they're going, and Gabriel won't ask her until we tell her to."
The angel issued a small tut, saying, "you just don't understand, Satania-san! A great deal of the excitement is contained in the wait! Don't you know this is the most enjoyable part? Any moment now Gab-chan is going to call us for advice, and it won't be as much fun if we aren't watching it!"
With a small shake of her head, Satania muttered a small "good grief..." before reclining on the roof.
Frowning at the gesture, Raphiel leaned over her, eliciting a small yelp from the demon as she ran her finger along Satania's face. "Now now, Satania-san," she scolded with another soft laugh, "should you really be so dismissive? After all, I can show you a looot of fun things~!"
"I-I have no interest in whatever you have to offer!" The demon squealed, pushing herself out from under the sadistic angel and scrambling away, raising her arms defensively as she did.
Still maintaining her sweet smile, Raphiel said, "Oh my~ Satania-san, there's no need to be so scared!" A dark shadow fell across her face as she added, "I wouldn't do aaanything to hurt you!"
"I'm fine!" The demon retorted, making no effort to move back.
...
Gabriel crouched down behind a bush, staring at her cellphone with a conflicted, almost hesitant expression. On the one hand, she still wasn't sure how to act around Vignette-a fact that had impressed ever harder as the day war on-but the only people she could turn to were the incompetent demon and the... less than well-intentioned Raphiel. Finally, taking a deep breath to calm her nerves and swallow her pride, she pressed the 'call' button.
Before the first ring had even ended, the call was answered with a bright, "Hello Gab-chan!"
Already the incompetent angel could feel a pit opening up in her stomach.
...
Flopping down onto her bed with a huff, Vignette reflected on the day she'd had. While it wasn't an unusual one, by and large, Gabriel had definitely been acting strange. That failangel didn't look me in the eye once, she barely talked at lunch, she didn't even try to copy my homework... something's definitely wrong here!
She rolled onto her back, staring at the ceiling with a brow furrowed in confusion. Clearly, if she intended to get to the bottom of this, she'd have to discern when Gabriel's odd behavior started.
Well, Gab was definitely off since she got to school, but what about before that? Thinking it over, she began to nod. Now that I think about it, she had that weird attitude yesterday, too...
The demon rose to her feet, following her train of thought as she attended to her evening chores. She was acting strangely when I left... over and over, she'd shoot me weird glances before looking away like she was a naughty kid who'd broken a vase or something... She scratched her chin over the dishes, scrubbing as she continued, actually, she'd been like that since dinner... no, since a little before dinner, actually...
Her sponge stopped mid-scrub. No, wait... I remember now! It all started when I ate those weird candies! I knew they were more important than Gab was letting on! Blushing deeply as she realized the true depth of her mistake, she resolved, I need to figure out what those candies meant to her! And I'm going to have to make it up to her, no matter what it takes!
...
"I can't do that!" Gabriel spluttered into her phone. Evening had come, and though she had gotten home without consequence-even when distracted by her conversation with Raphiel-she was still with wrestling with the issue directly in front of her: how to act around Vignette, and (more importantly to the sadistic angel, if Gabriel knew her at all) the details of their date. "That would be WAY over the line!"
With a soft chuckle, Raphiel replied, "Perhaps, but in order to find the truth we must be willing to enter... unexplored territory, correct? In the name of that truth, you must cross that line!"
Scoffing at this, the failangel replied, "That's still way too direct! I mean, we're just friends, I can't-"
The doorbell rang, cutting Gabriel off. "I have to go, someone's at the door." She said, ending the call without giving Raphiel a chance to respond. Raising an eyebrow, she walked over to the door and glanced at the doorcam to see who had come to visit.
"Vignette?" She muttered in surprise.
...
An awkward silence filled the angel's small kitchen as she fidgeted in her seat, unsure how to proceed in this situation. Gabriel had thought she could avoid dealing with Vignette for tonight at least, and yet here the demon was, shifting uncomfortably in her chair. The silence continued unbroken until Vignette, seemingly unable to handle it any longer, rose to her feet and began rifling through Gabriel's cabinets.
Blinking in surprise, the lazy angel asked, "Hey, uh, what are you doing, Vignette?"
The fastidious demon huffed, saying, "I'm making dinner, of course!" Turning away with a slight pout, she added, "you were probably just going to eat something instant anyway, right?"
Deciding not to reply, Gabriel merely nodded, training her gaze on the ground as her friend busied herself with the kitchen matters.
The angel eased her chin onto the table, reflecting on the day. It had been far too exhausting for the average school day, and frankly she was done with it. Plus, a quick cat nap would give her an easy excuse not to talk to Vignette, right?
This in mind, she let her eyebrows drift closed and soon began snoozing away.
...
Vignette sighed, not at all surprised but slightly exasperated by the fact that the groceries she and Gabriel had purchased the night prior were untouched. I guess it makes sense, she thought, Gab's not really the type to make a bentou, and... honestly, I'd be surprised to learn she even eats breakfast. She paused with a small frown before shaking her head, thinking, well, I can deal with that later. For now, our options for dinner are pretty open.
"Hey, Gab-" she began, cutting herself off when she realized the incompetent angel had falling asleep and was now gently napping. Furrowing her brow slightly, she thought, Really. I'm offering to make her dinner, and she can't even bother to stay awake! She paused for a moment as the implications settled upon her, she thought, Actually... now that I think about it, this gives me a chance to investigate... She shook her head as if to chase away the pesky temptations. No! That would be rude, not to mention taking advantage of her trust!
She glanced slyly over her shoulder as she began to prepare their dinner, placing a pot of noodles on boil as she thought, well... I mean, that DOES sound kind of devilish... and I'm pretty concerned...
Taking a deep breath and shooting Gabriel's sleeping face a guilty look, she concluded, a little look wouldn't hurt, right?
...
"What are you doing?"
Vignette flinched, slowly turning to look behind her with the bag of 7 Color Drops clutched in her hands. She quietly prayed-a very non-demonic thing to do-that she wouldn't see what she expected to see.
Unfortunately, that's exactly what she saw: Gabriel, looking somewhat drowsy from her nap, now staring somewhat accusingly at the demon.
Fumbling for some kind of excuse, Vignette finally managed to stutter out, "W-well, um, since it would take a bit before dinner was finished cooking, s-so I thought maybe I could take that time to tidy up a bit!"
The angel raised an eyebrow, clearly unconvinced, before asking, "So that just happened to be the first thing you grabbed?"
For a moment the demon said nothing, her face reddening before she finally forced a sheepish grin and replied, "yes?"
With a sigh, the angel took back the bag of enchanted candies before saying, "Alright, now what's the actual reason you took these?"
Cringing slightly at the self-reproach Gabriel's comment engendered within her, Vignette said, "erm... well, I, uh..."
For a moment she wavered. On the one hand, it felt wrong to lie, especially after the normally uncouth angel was giving her a chance to explain herself; on the other hand, if she told Gabriel why she'd taken the bag Vignette knew she'd never get another chance to find out what made it so important.
The demon took a deep breath and, pausing to swallow down her conscience, said, "I-I ended up really liking that candy, and I wasn't sure where to get more, so... I couldn't really help myself...?"
Fixing the demon with a piercing gaze, Gabriel stared at her for a moment before relaxing her shoulders and saying, "Close your eyes."
Blinking in surprise, Vignette nonetheless did so with a confused expression. She waited and waited, waiting for some explanation until she suddenly tasted a strange burst of... strawberry? flavor. It was still hard to place, but she recognized it now, especially considering the soft pressure on her lips.
Vignette's eyes fluttered open to Gabriel's finger pressed against her mouth, the angel herself facing away-but not quite enough to hide the blush on her cheeks.
"Just this once, okay?" The angel said. "And you better not do it again."
Nodding in subdued agreement, the demon chewed quietly on the candy.
It's sweet, she thought.
...
"...and then we had dinner. I helped her clean up after-" Vignette paused at the sound of a soft chuckle on the other end before, with a self-conscious frown, rectified, "-I cleaned up after dinner, and then I went home."
The demon lay on her bed, her cell phone in her hand as she sprawled out.
For a moment the line was silent before Raphiel finally replied, "I see. And what did you think of this?"
Her brow furrowing in confusion as heat slowly rose to her cheeks, Vignette said, "Well... I don't know. It was kind of..." her blush deepened, "cute on Gab's part, but I'm not sure how to feel about it. I still don't know what the candies are or why they're so important to her or why she was so weird today." Her frown deepening, the demon asked, "Gabriel was acting weird, right? I'm not being overly conscious of her or something, am I?"
A small hmm came across the line and Raphiel said, "She certainly was acting strange today, but those candies..."
Raphiel allowed herself a small, wicked grin, well aware Vignette wouldn't be able to see it.
"Why, I have no idea! You must keep investigating them and tell me what they mean. But you shouldn't lose sight of Gab. You have to keep an eye on her, and maybe you'll learn why she's acting so out of character!"
Nodding in agreement, Vignette said, "you're right, Raphi! I have to keep looking! Thank you-I can always rely on you being there when I need you!"
With another soft chuckle, the sadistic angel replied, "oh, I know!" before ending the call.
She gently lowered her phone onto the desk she sat at, reflecting on the conversation. I'm surprised Vigne-san realized the candies were important! She thought. Things can only get more interesting if she does, so I must say I'm happy with this development!
"How'd you get in here!?"
Raphiel glanced over to the bed Satania lounged upon, the arrogant demon distracted from the multiple notebooks she seemed focus on to direct her attention at the angel occupying her desk.
Offering an innocent smile, Raphiel replied, "Why, wherever you are, Satania-san, so too shall I appear!"
The demon started to form a response before sighing, apparently defeated by the angel's burglary skills and complete lack of common decency and instead returned to her work.
Stepping away from the desk with a curious expression, Raphiel asked, "What are you doing, Satania-san?"
For a moment the demon fixed her with a suspicious stare before finally replying, "What else? I'm crafting the most ingenious and dastardly of dates that Gabriel will fall victim to and become a thrall of Vignette!" With a cackle, she added, "After this, Gabriel will be yet another servant of Hell! It will be a victory from the very gate in the name of the great future demon lord of Hell, Kurumizawa Satanichia McDowell!"
Gently putting a finger up to her lips, Raphiel replied, "I'm sure it will, be, Satania-san, but shouldn't it wait? It mustn't be the first date, after all!"
Her brow raising in confusion, the demon asked, "What? Why would we conserve such a devilish scheme!?"
Raising her finger informatively, Raphiel replied, "Surely you've heard the saying 'save the best for last', Satania-san? If you open with a victory, it will hardly raise your prestige. But if you allow Tapris and her friend to go first and then defeat them, your astounding date will seem fantastic and world-shattering by comparison, of course!"
The demon rubbed her chin for a moment before finally muttering, "Very well... you have swayed me, servant of heaven..." She relaxed into her bed, wondering aloud, "I wonder what that foolish angel and that quiet demon are doing, anyway?"
...
"Chisaki, you forgot this at school..."
"HOW DID YOU FIND MY HOUSE!?"