AN: We've officially passed the 150k mark! That said, I'm going to put a little PSA right here to remind the binge readers of the future to take a water break, stretch your legs, or go to sleep. Whatever self care you're currently neglecting, go do that and relish in it. According to the internet, you psychos have been reading for eight hours.
Raven had been noticing a trend.
The collosal creature was being summoned closer and closer to the center of the universe. So much so that its latest victim, in a long line of planets it had been summoned to, was a repeat she easily recognized. And she was growing concerned.
After all, two was a coincidence, three was a pattern.
Durphos 6 may have changed drastically, but the little stoat-like aliens, now called Ferrat, were still as adorable as she remembered them to be. They had barely evolved in the last six thousand plus years. Their species had only grown slightly taller, their frames a tad leaner, and their heads a bit larger in that time frame, but they were still the six legged fashionistas they had been on her first visit.
The fashion focused culture still seemed to have a place over its people, but another thing had also sprung up and taken hold of the critters while she had been away. Intricate buildings filled to the brim with entertainment, food, and gambling. Luxurious room and board with top notch service in hotels that reached the sky, and strip malls that stretched out as far as the eye could see. Glittering neon signs, loud clashes of music, and shops with every must-have flooding the first floor of each establishment.
The Ferrat had come a long way from accidentally marrying her to her best friend. Now they were helping aliens of all backgrounds and religions marry accidentally and on purpose, day in and day out.
They'd become the Las Vegas of the Universe and Raven wasn't sure what to think of that. She missed all of the trees and quaint housing.
It was mind boggling.
And Danny wouldn't stop giggling about it.
"It's funny, alright? I didn't know the little guys had it in 'em." He told her as the duo walked down the strip, inspecting the damages incurred during the fight they'd had against the colossus earlier. Their shielding technology was fairly advanced and nearly no buildings had been damaged, save for one that had been left out of the shield at the time. Luckily, it had under construction and there were no occupants inside it when it collapsed.
"I can't help feeling like we're partly responsible for the course this planet has taken." Raven flicked her wrist and the large piece of rubble in their path was encased in darkness and lifted out of the road. "After all, you were the one who introduced marriage as a concept."
"Maybe we played a slight part there." A head tilt, a raised eyebrow, and an unamused glare before he was quickly correcting himself. "Okay, maybe I played a part there." He conceded as he raised a hand and buried it into his black hair. His fingers weaving between the tresses at the back of his head before he scratched at the skin there sheepishly. "But the little guys were already obsessed with shopping, we didn't teach them how to bet, and they already had alcohol on this planet before we got here." There was a good argument there, he wasn't wrong about those aspects. "One slight thing does not make us responsible for the whole of it."
No, she didn't agree with that sentiment. A snowball rolling down hill, growing larger by the foot until it was massive enough to destroy a town? It was still a slight thing when it had been created. She needed to be paying better attention to how the immortals influenced the planets they visited.
"Besides, they look pretty happy. And I bet those casinos are raking in the cash. They went from an underdeveloped system to a powerhouse planet pretty quickly. I can't help but be happy for them." Danny finished as he rushed to move a large piece of rebar with the thickness of his torso and the length of three of him stacked on top of each other. The halfa lifted it out of the road with ease and placed it on top of the rest of the rubble in its building's destroyed lot. The long sleeves of his shirt pulled up slightly as he worked, and revealed the tail end of the markings near his left wrist. The ecto-energy that he'd used in the act had erupted and created a green sheen across his skin. When finished, the glow finally died down, leaving him as pale and human looking as he'd been when they'd gotten there.
"That's definitely a way to look at things."
"Hey, so," the man segued terribly as the pair checked over the area for anymore building shards that could impede the walkways and roads leading into the city. "There's this place on 9th Street. Really amazing breakfast foods." He told her as they made their way back to the main lot after having found nothing else to grab. He turned to face her, floating backwards as he spoke. "I was hoping we could go there after we finish our cleanup efforts here."
There was an oddness to his body language and energy. A nervousness underlining his words and accenting his limbs as he moved that she couldn't help but notice. He wasn't being very subtle, when his fingers went to his hair and his eyes practically screamed with anxiety, even passerby could notice the halfa was tense.
But why?
"And when did you have the time to learn this information?" She asked as they made their way towards the center of the building's lot, the sorceress' eyes never left the halfas. His nervousness only grew with every additional word.
"When you were talking to the mayor and offering our help to clean up." Danny explained too quickly. The halfa looked at his feet and blinked in surprise at his levitating state before his toes returned to the dirt. "I was talking to the locals and they all agreed it was among the best places to eat, if not the best."
"I'm not sure how long this will take us." Raven answered reluctantly as consuming alien foods had quickly become the immortal's favorite tradition upon visiting a planet. She enjoyed the novel experiences and the simplicity of getting to talk and joke with him over a meal neither of them had to make. "They might be closed by the time we get there."
He groaned at her words, realizing she was probably right in her assumptions. "We could go tomorrow?" Danny tried again, the anxious energy spiking alongside her suspicions of the undead man.
She stated quiet for a long moment, a smug tug to her lips as he began to stim. His fingers rubbing against each other as she remained silent for too long, their pace quickening as her smirk on her lips grew.
"You have an ulterior motive." Raven stated, Danny jumping in surprise at how easily he'd been caught. "You're only insistent like this when you're trying to hide your intentions or when you're hiding something from me."
"I-" Wide blue eyes that looked so lost and unprepared. She almost felt bad for him, but it served him right for trying to pull something without telling her first. He sighed and all of the tension vanished from his body as it slumped into a deep and defeated slouch. "I wanted to ask you something."
She let out a single laugh at his expense as she crossed her arms across her chest, he was always so expressive. "What could you possibly want to ask that you cannot ask me here and now?"
"I-" He choked and looked up at her through his bangs. Oh, he looked absolutely miserable. Perhaps she should have let him broach the subject on his own terms. She still struggled with when to push Danny for answers and when to let him come to her. A delicate balance they hadn't quite mastered-
"Raven, I was gonna ask you to marry me."
"Oh."
"Yeah."
Oh. Oh! The demoness's heart suddenly felt full, like a balloon about to explode inside of her chest. She couldn't help the smile from sprouting in her lips and couldn't stop her magic from destroying the destructed site even further. To say she was surprised was an understatement. To say she was delighted would be an unfair description of the depth of her feelings. But those words were the only ones she could conjure in that moment. So lost in her heart she could barely put a thought together. So lost in herself she hadn't realized she'd been quiet for a few minutes until Raven finally pulled her focus back into her physical body.
Only to find he was rambling.
"Since we're here. We could, I dunno. Do it again but actually consent to it." Danny was telling her, his nervousness was all she could see, all she could feel. He was on the verge of panic, his pacing only increasing the anxiety with every step and turn. "We're basically married anyway, but it'd be nice to do it officially. With like a ceremony and stuff." He was pulling on the roots of his hair too hard.
Raven decided she'd had enough of this, she wouldn't allow him to feel this way any longer. She shook off her shock and approached his still moving form with quick and determined steps.
Danny noticed her approach, but continued to speak, "But I get it if it's not something you're comfortable with. A lot of people have struggled with doing that kind of thing and there's no-"
She took his hands in hers and forced him to still. "Yes."
"-pressure. Wait, what? Really?"
"Of course I'll marry you." The pressure was growing in her chest again at the sight of his utter bewilderment. It had her magic sparking at the edge of her vision so she turned away from him to remove his influence from her sight. She needed to calm down and nothing was better to force her to focus than working at an objective. "Now, we need to organize the rubble pile into three groups: metals, woods, and stones. The mayor said his people would handle the rest."
"Okay. Okay, cool. Yeah, no problem." Danny said to himself, loud enough for her ears to catch the words whispered from behind her. "Back to work."
It was inefficient labor. Both parties were so distracted with their thoughts that, by the time everything had been properly organized, the sun was low on the horizon.
A light sheen of perspiration covered her skin as the last traces of her magic dispersed into the air. Raven turned to look at her companion and scowled at his at ease form. He hadn't even broken a sweat despite his more hands on approach to moving massive amounts of rubble and debris. He wiped his hands against the material of his pants before he turned to grin at her with the largest smile she had ever seen on his face. The demoness couldn't help but allow the soft smile the sight of him inspired to sprout from her lips. Danny sprinted towards her and grabbed her hand in his, laughing as he pulled her into flight before he dragged her behind him and back into the cityscape.
They were quickly back at city hall, the half ghost excitedly pulling the demoness behind him as they made their way towards the Mayor's office. The Ferrat from earlier more than willing to redirect the pair to the cafeteria where the stoat in charge was eating his dinner. His fork was piled high with a meatloaf look alike and on its journey to his furry little mouth when the pair reached his table.
"Ah," the mayor greeted happily as he placed his full utensil back on the tray before him. He pulled at the fabric of his white button up near his wrist, his light beige fur slightly ruffled from a long day of paperwork and phone calls. "Saviors! You completed that task much quicker than I anticipated." The Ferrat gave them a smile before he moved his upper right paw to gesture to the cafeteria line. "Would you like to join me? Closing hours are growing near."
"No thanks, Sanderson." Danny declined, bouncing on the balls of his feet, he looked as though he would fly away at any moment, too excited to stand still. "I'm going to marry her." He announced without preamble, his words causing the mayor's jaw to fall open in surprise. "How do we do that? Is there like a process or-"
"You're-" Sanderson stammered as he looked back and forth between the pair. "Here?" He squeaked as he moved to stand on his chair to better reach out and grab the halfa's hand, shaking it enthusiastically. "Oh, that's- that's wonderful! Exciting! Excellent!" The little guy was practically vibrating with excitement and Raven couldn't tell which male was happier about their engagement. "We will make it the most grand of spectacles! A cake as large as a casino! In our best hotel! Or maybe our most beautiful beach? No. Park? No-"
"Not a spectacle." Raven cut him off right there. She wasn't going to let the Ferrat get ahead of himself with plans she had no desire to entertain. "I am not fond of the attention."
"Not-" his stoat face visibly deflated as he processed her words. "Oh." Sanderson sighed as he went back to sitting in his chair, a paw stroking the brown spotted fur of his cheek while he thought. "Well, there is a mass marriage ceremony that will be done in the next, oh, two hours or so." The mayor began to explain slowly, watching their reactions for any sign to stop, waiting for her to reject the idea. "It's for all of the proposals that happened post apocalypse. It's incredible the amount of people suddenly wanting to get married right after the world almost ended." He laughed and shook his head fondly at the thought.
"What does it entail?"
"Hm?" Sanderson asked with an adorable tilt to his head when he didn't quite understand her inquiry.
"Like, what do we have to do?" Danny translated with ease as he shifted his weight and scratched at the back of his head.
"Oh! Well, you dress up, wait in line, sign your names on the marriage certificate and go inside to drink and eat at the buffet. There's a dance floor and music. It's for people who wanted to celebrate but didn't make any actual plans." The stoat blinked and glanced nervously at Raven before he quickly added, "Or for people like you who don't want the additional attention."
"Well?" The halfa asked as he turned to her, waiting for her to verbalize the decision they both were aware she'd made.
"Simple and modest." She nodded once as the Ferrat before them grew only more anxious. "Sure."
"Okay, yeah." Danny agreed easily as he turned back to Sanderson to get a better understanding of the process. "Do we have to sign up ahead of time or-"
"No, but-" the Mayor was practically vibrating as he interrupted, an internal debate they were not privy to as the Ferrat finally broke and spoke his true wishes. "At least allow us to dress you." Sanderson begged in a rush, his four front paws clapping together into a plea. "You saved us! Let me take you to the finest establishments for your clothes for your wedding." He begged before he quickly added a desperate, "Please!"
"Uh," Danny verbalized his uncertainty as he looked between the alien and his partner.
"Fine."
"Oh, thank you!" Cried Sanderson as he kept down from the table and grabbed his tray before he made his way towards the cafeteria's exit. "Come now, this way."
"Not gonna finish your dinner?" The halfa asked as he turned to follow. They watched as the Ferrat dumped the trays contents into the trash before stacking it on the top of the pile of other used trays waiting for their nightly wash.
"I'm not a fan of ground loaf anyway." The Mayor remarked as he turned to look at them with a grin rivaling Danny's in width and enthusiasm. "Besides, I'm too excited to eat now! The clothes are always the best part."
Raven was inclined to disagree with that last statement. After making their way through the strip, led by a very determined stoat-based alien, they ended up in a very expensive looking bridal shop. White cut cloths as far as the eye could see, shaped for every common alien body type seen in this sector of the galaxy. Large bodices and small, sporting styles with up to six arm holes. It was accommodating to even the strangest of species with styles easily re-hemmed for the exemplary body type.
Upon their arrival, Sanderson immediately flagged down a particular young stoat, his light green fur had no spotting or grey streaks, which were common signs of age for the species. He practically jumped for joy at the news and scurried over to the pair, soft ruler in hand.
"I can't believe it!" The seamster exclaimed as he expertly climbed and measured Raven's body. "The Saviors! Getting married! In my clothes!" He jumped from her shoulders and squealed with excitement as he ran over to a table to jot down her measurements. "I can't believe I get to have this honor! Am I dressing him too?" The light green stoat asked Sanderson as he wrote, his head still down and focused on his numbers.
"Well, Fern-"
"It'd be easier to just get the clothes from the same place." Danny voiced the thought as he leaned back against one of the ornate pillars decorating the interior.
The Mayor sighed as a paw came up to rub at his snout. "If you have the ability to get both outfits done in about an hour."
"An hour?!" Fern shouted as his head jerked up to look at the three in shock.
"They wish to join the mass marriage ceremony."
"I-" the green furred Ferrat looked between them, his brown eyes searching before they hardened into determination. He raised his chin, nodded, and spoke clearly. "I can and I will."
"Excellent. I'll go grab a snack while both of you get ready. If you'd like, I can escort you to the location?"
"Sounds good, Mr. Mayor." Danny approved as he threw the Ferrat a thumbs up before Sanderson was out the door and the pair were left alone with the seamster.
"Alright," Fern whispered to himself as he scurried up to Raven and gestured for them to follow him. "You first. Do you have a particular style you'd prefer?"
"A dress is fine. But I won't wear white."
"What a hardcore goth." Danny sassed as he followed them deeper into the building and past the display outfits, lagging only a few steps behind.
"Because of what they did to you." She clarified as she turned to look pointedly at him over her shoulder.
"Oh." Escaped his lips and his gaze upon her turned to one of wonder. She felt a blush sprout on her cheeks and as she turned away from him she heard his soft reply. "I don't deserve you."
Raven scoffed as Fern tugged her through a door on their right and into a private room. "I wouldn't have agreed if I believed that."
"Not white is not a problem. Some cultures see white as a bad omen color." The seamster informed them as he moved to the back and dragged out a colorful rack with a sign on the front. Her translation spell shifted the text into a language she could read with ease 'Four limbs, Bi-ped'. "Is there a color you'd prefer?"
"Black." Danny's amused snort could be heard around the world with how loudly it echoed in the tiled room.
"Style?"
Raven's hand moved to touch the fabric of her sweater, the epidermis of her right forearm hummed beneath her fingertips as she dug them into the skin. Her lips parted and her mind fell into the past. She could taste the ectoplasm-laced electricity in the air. She could hear his muffled screaming as he bit his mouth shut. Could see him writhing from the pain, tears gathering at the corner of his eyes. Could feel him dying over and over and over again as the puddle of ectoplasm beneath him grew larger by the second.
A cold hand covered her own and brought her back to the present. She blinked before her gaze followed that hand back to its owner, her head moving with the movement. Blue eyes caught hers and Danny gave her a weary smile as his fingers squeezed hers once before he let go.
"My right arm must be covered." It wasn't as though she were ashamed of what had happened, far from it. The reality was that the sight of it brought her back to Antares II, brought her back to those feelings of sheer terror and fear. On a happy day like today, she wanted no reminders. Raven wanted to just exist in this moment, to enjoy and celebrate their relationship without remembering the times she'd thought she'd lost him.
"Black and right sleeve..." Fern mumbled to himself as he turned back to the rack and began to leaf through the options. "Two arms..." the green Ferrat kept mumbling little details to himself, her measurements and ideal lengths of the skirt, before he gave out a loud, excited, shriek of joy and pulled out a black dress. He shoved it into her arms and dragged her into the changing area in the back of the room. "Try it on! We have the main form, we can do alterations as we see fit."
The dress stopped just above her knees and covered both of her arms equally, all the way down to the wrist. The curve of the fabric over her shoulders was a bit loose but fit well over her thighs and bust. Not too much work seemed to be needed, but she'd let the professional decide that.
Satisfied that she had the dress on as best as she could, Raven left the confines of the changing room and opened the door to be subjected to Fern's judgement. What she didn't anticipate, was how she caught sight of Danny's reaction to her from the sewing machine's countertop he'd been lounging against. His lips were parted in surprise, eyes wide and cheeks red. He'd seen her in much, much, less. It was almost silly how stunned he looked. Besides, they were just clothes, why was he *blushing?
"-took it off?"
Fern's voice came crashing through her internal thoughts and drew her attention back to the stoat alien. Right, they didn't have much time. She needed to be paying attention. "As long as I have a right sleeve." She repeated, the demoness didn't really care what the Ferrat would do to the garment. As long as that sleeve was there to protect her from the bad memories that lingered at the edge of her mind, waiting for the most inopportune moments to strike her down and render her powerless.
"Perfect." Fern replied before he secured the last pin and drew a light line of white chalk between the curve of her breast and around her left shoulder blade. "Take that off without moving any of the pins." The seamster directed the sorceress before he turned his back to her to address the halfa. "You're next."
When she came out of the changing room, Danny and Fern were gone. Only a small blue Ferrat was there to greet her, the fur at the top of its head gathered together with a bow between their ears. "I am Sway," she greeted with a smile, her voice a bit deeper than most other Ferrat they'd met. The blue Ferrat held out all four of her arms and gave the demoness an expectant look. "I will be making the alterations Master Fern has marked to be made."
Raven gently placed the pin laced garment into Sway's waiting paws before the seamstress scurried over to the counter Danny had been leaning against earlier and got to work.
It was amazing seeing the sewing skills of the Ferrat in person. Sway was so quick in the alterations; removing pins with her upper left paw, pulling the fabric through the machine with her upper right and lower left, and straighting the fabric with her lower right as she went. The process was over in minutes before Sway was shifting the garment and grabbing the scissors, cutting into the chalk line and removing the left sleeve entirely. Then she was back to sewing, and the alterations were done by the time Fern rejoined them.
"We got lucky with the suit, too. I swear, I've never been so lucky with a last second client like this." Fern remarked as Sway put on the final touches on the dress. "He's dressed and waiting in the lobby with Mayor Sanderson. We're just waiting on her now."
"Done." Sway announced before she jumped from the table and ran over to the Demoness. "Thank you for helping us." The Ferrat thanked as she handed over the folded dress with a happy smile.
"It was the right thing to do." Came the whispered response from the Sorceress as she entered the changing area for the last time.
Raven had to admit Fern and Sway were skilled in their craft, the missing fabric from her left shoulder didn't look missing at all. It felt natural and some of the extra fabric they'd removed had been repurposed to the right arm's sleeve, a little loop added to the end to secure it around her fingers and to prevent it from riding up and revealing her reminder. She felt very thankful at the small act of kindness as she finished adjusting the garment, shoved her old clothes in her pocket dimension, and rejoined the others.
She felt even more thankful to the pair of seamsters at the sight of him.
Navy blue. Of course he'd insist on that color. The way it made the icy blue of his eyes pop, the black of his hair appear darker, an already handsome man became more than merely eye catching. Raven had stopped at the sight of him and fought to keep her breath composed, but he'd seen through her rouse. Danny let out a laugh at her surprise before he walked over to take her hand.
"You're beautiful." A statement made for statement's sake as his index finger and thumb gently pulled at the chain around her neck. The Ring of Rage proudly displayed in her possession. The two words had been uttered like he hadn't been able to contain them and probably saw no reason to try.
"Not so bad yourself." She whispered through a smirk as she lifted her hand to intertwine their fingers and pulled him from the relic. Their callouses pressed together as the grip tightened.
"If you'll follow me, Saviors." Mayor Sanderson asked as the duo had left the bridal shop and after Danny had given enthusiastic hugs to both Ferrat. "This way."
It was a short walk to the casino hosting the event. Even so, Raven was glad she had forgone the heels and kept her black ballet flats. They hadn't been able to fit in the pocket dimension and she wasn't about to leave her belongings behind. With that thought, Raven looked over to her unburdened, undead, companion and noted he'd also kept his shoes but... He'd left his clothes with Fern hadn't he?
"What?" Danny whispered when he noticed she was staring at him. He was just so... trusting.
She let out a single laugh at his expense, her amusement in her soul too much to keep contained. "You." She whispered as she leaned into his side while they walked. "Just you."
The casino hosting the mass marriage event was packed. Several tables were set up in the large lobby each with a line so long Raven couldn't see the species of aliens manning the front. After a quick goodbye, and an insistence that the duo did not need his Mayoral power to skip to the front, the pair got into the shortest looking line and proceeded to wait. The aliens closest to them often took a second glance in the immortals direction, eyes wide with disbelief at the sight of them.
Raven shifted her weight at the growing attention. It seemed keeping it simple and modest had not kept her from the attention she had so badly wanted to avoid. She could hear the whispers, feel their gazes on her skin, her anxiety growing in her belly as she desperately tried to hold it off while everyone around them kept watching, watching, watching.
A voice broke through her building tension. A voice she had made company with for well over the majority of her lifespan. Low and gentle, it pulled her from her mind alongside the gentle strokes of his thumb against the back of her hand.
"Thank you."
"Hm?" Why was he thanking her now? Whatever for?
"For agreeing, but... I know they're making you uncomfortable," his eyes flitted about the space, spanning over the curious eyes, before they returned to hers. "We don't have to do this."
"I want to."
"I know." He whispered the relief through a small, melancholy, smile. "And that's enough. I don't like it when you feel this way."
"An inevitability." Raven reassured as the tension left her shoulders. Speaking to him was a sufficient enough distraction from the masses and she was already feeling better for it. "Modest or grand, we were going to draw eyes no matter what we did." That was true. As long as they were getting married on a planet they had saved, they would have attention. But Danny had wanted to get married here. Had wanted to do it again with both of their consents here. And she was going to make sure it happened, attention be damned. "An hour of discomfort is worth the result."
He turned his head away from her. "I don't deserve you." The whisper felt far too sad and heartbroken for a day like today, so she moved to lift his fallen gaze by taking his chin in her hand and forcing it upwards and back towards herself.
"And yet, you have my heart and you have my soul." Her gaze pierced his as she leaned into his space. Her words were honest and true, but she wanted him to *feel it. Wanted him to know it without a doubt. He did deserve her. And even if he somehow didn't, she didn't care. After a few moments passed where the world kept moving but the two immortals stayed still, she finally leaned away from him, her grip on his chin looser but still there. More like a caress than a way to force the man to look at her.
"I'm keeping my mind." She told him with a wicked smirk, her eyes glinting dangerously as though the words were a challenge. "You wouldn't use it properly anyway."
He laughed. He laughed so much she had to pull her fingers away from his chin. He laughed so hard that tears were springing from his eyes. A beautiful, sad, laugh that cleansed the darkness away from his soul and could lift the weight off of one's chest. "Yeah," he whispered as he began to calm down. "Yeah," Danny repeated as the pair moved up the line the lengthy space that had been left vacant as they spoke. "That makes sense."
"And I'm not taking your last name. I don't need one."
His chuckle was joyful, the dark skies long gone, blown away by her words. "Of course, Raven Fenton sounds awful."
"Raven Phantom sounds even worse." She teased as the last of their tension evaporated.
"Ugh, it does."
"Raven Nightingale doesn't sound that bad." She conceded as they moved further up the line. It may have been a long que, but at least it was moving quickly.
"It doesn't. But it wouldn't be, you know-"
"Real."
"Yeah." Danny sighed the word as he grinned at her. The two fell into a comfortable silence as the line before them shortened, the only communication between them in the form of reassuring hand squeezes.
The eyes she could sense upon her only grew in number the closer to the front the pair got, and when it was their turn, the whispers crescendoed into a roar in her ears. She desperately tried to tune it out as they were greeted by a pair of friendly looking Ferrat whose eyes were wider than dinner plates at the sight of them.
"N-n-names?" The pink Ferrat stuttered as his shakey paw reached out for the marriage certificate.
"Danny Fenton and Raven." The halfa answered easily as he left go of her hand to grab a pen.
"R-right." The alien replied, his nervous energy spiking as he stared at them in disbelief. "S-sign here a-and here p-" his light pink claws tapped two sections of the certificate. "Please." The halfa signed in the required spaces before he handed Raven the pen and she signed as quickly as he had.
"You are now considered Married throughout the Vargas system," the other Ferrat stated calmly as the pink one by her side looked a few moments away from fainting. "Please wait five to ten business days before applying for any loans or grants from other planets. It takes a while for the data to make it to our neighboring systems."
"Cool, thanks." The pink furred Ferrat took their certificate and flipped it over. Light erupted from the table's surface as it scanned the document for just a second before the table lost its illumination.
"Thank you," the calm Ferrat spoke the words reverently, as though they were meant for more than just filling out the documents properly.
The nervous pink one also gave his thanks before he gently picked up the document and, with shaking paws and head bowing respectfully, he held it out for them to take. "P-please follow the signs to the Venue w-where there are foods and r-refreshments. We h-hope you have a wonderful w-w-wedding experience!"
Raven took the document from the Ferrat's waiting paws and walked around the table as Danny thanked them one last time. He caught up to her easily, as his long legs hardly had to work for it. She lovingly folded the paper in half before she opened her pocket dimension and placed the paper inside next to her clothes. Her Teen Titian communicator, an Ectometer, and a very beat up CD all remained squished up against the sides. The few memories she had left with physical forms. Things too precious to risk losing, locked away in the magical equivalent of a junk drawer.
The venue was exactly what one would expect from a casino in the space equivalent of Las Vegas. Crystal chandeliers, an indoor water feature, a multitude of tables with foods, upon foods, upon foods, piled high on every square inch. The music was very different from the stylings the Ferrat ancestors had played, more upbeat and industrialized than the slow strings and wooden instruments of the past.
Danny laughed to her left, and she turned to see him already in conversation with an alien who she recognized from the earlier apocalypse. A jelly-like consistency to its skin that rippled as it moved, the halfa had helped them get behind the shields right as the first wave of interdimensional beasts had arrived.
Raven already felt too crowded in. Too caged by the tall walls and too many people's eyes glued to her every step. The air was hot from all of the blood warming it and she couldn't breathe.
She spotted a balcony, well hidden with wide and luxurious drapes, framed with pillars large enough to hide the doorway when viewed from most of the room.
"I need some air." Raven whispered to her undead husband. He nodded once in acknowledgement when he heard her in the loud room with ease, without breaking conversation with the Jelly person.
Her footsteps were smothered by the sounds of music playing and a hundred different voices ringing out in the room's space, as she made her way outside. Once among the stars, she took in a deep, calming, breath and leaned her thighs against the banister as she gathered her thoughts.
Until a voice broke the silence from near the doorway. The doors that had not moved since she had gone outside.
"Congratulations."
Raven gasped in surprise at the suddenness of another person being within her close vicinity. Turning quickly, she saw a long, lean body, with brown skin and heavy red undertones that made his short dark hair look darker. A humanoid man only a few inches taller than her, his black hair slicked back, his suit pristine and perfect for the occasion. His appearance out of nowhere, his gall to speak to her when they had never met, and the calculating look in his eyes were all unsettling. But those things weren't what had set her so on edge that she'd taken a step back at the sight of him.
He felt like Father.
He felt like Jesse.
She moved.
Her fingers danced as she quickly shot off an attack spell. She aimed a little too high and a tad bit too far to the left on purpose, wanting to force the man into dodging instead of launching a counter attack.
Instead of doing either of those things, the man let out an amused chuckle and waved his hand to conjure a barrier spell. The magic clashed as darkness warped around itself before it dispersed into the air and once more became shadows.
"Come now," he tutted amused as he straightened his red tie. "There's no need for that."
"You-" she floundered, her eyes wide as she stared at him, magic still sparking on her fingertips and ready for the next spell. "You're not here to fight?"
"Fight the woman who defeated Trigon?" He asked incredulously as his hands moved to lace behind his back. "The woman with an unkillable beast on her heels everywhere she goes? No." He chuckled as he eyed her up and down, his energy was sincere, confident, and very much delighted. "Why would I do that, when I very much like being alive?"
"I-" She couldn't finish the sentence. The sheer shock at the other demon's unwillingness to fight her had her reeling for a semblance of control. "Then-" Her fingers flexed before they curled into fists and settled at her sides, she straightened her posture as she continued to wearily watch the strange demon before her. "Why are you here?"
"I would never miss my baby sister's wedding." Came his earnest reply.
His aura was open for her to read, emotions bared for the conversation. For what reason? She wasn't sure, probably to gain her trust or convey his honesty. Either way, it would be hard to sell as she wasn't quick to trust anyone. Danny had been the exception to that rule, but he had a way about him that was excellent at wearing down the walls of lone wolves. She'd seen it time and time again.
"What kind of brother would I be to not come by and offer my congratulations?"
"Brother." She stated. It was not a question.
"Yes." His grin pulled the skin of his lips away from the fangs in his mouth, revealing the size, curve, and sharpness to them in a single intimating movement. "I'm James. It's very nice to finally have a sibling who will actually listen and cease brawling upon contact."
"I-" Raven blinked as she straightened her spine out of her fighting stance but kept her spells ready on her fingertips. She stared at the other half demon like he were a particularly perplexing puzzle. "I killed Jesse." Was he not aware? He should be oozing with animosity, desperate to avenge their lost sibling. Not having a civil conversation in formal ware.
"I know." Her surprise mounted, so much so she lost hold of her magic and the protection spell she had prepared dispersed. James' eyes flickered to her lax hands before his head tilted to the side, his gaze lingering on the doorway back to the party. Back to where Danny was waiting. "Water under the bridge, Sister dear." James reassured her as his head turned back to hers, his gaze dark and emotional energies complex. He felt conflicted, yearning, weary, afraid, and angry. So, so, angry. "I told him to not engage you and the idiot did it anyway. He had it coming."
"You're... Not here to get revenge?"
"What part of 'congratulations' do you not understand?" It was like the rug had been pulled out from under her, his emotions went from enraged to amused so quickly. Too quickly, the man before her was very much capable of controlling himself, that much was clear. "Well, I suppose you are not entirely incorrect. You see through my rouse." A short laugh as he moved to the other end of the balcony to lean against its banister. "I do have a secondary reason for being here after all. But it's not to fight." This time the chuckle was more drawn out, as he finally moved his gaze away from her and onto the horizon. "Heaven and Hell both know I would never fight you directly like this."
Raven didn't dignify James with a verbal response, only a pulse of curiosity in her aura and a quirked eyebrow he failed to see, to indicate she was listening.
"Well," James lifted his left hand, the rings on his fingers were plain, bands glinting against the neon in the distance. "I figured it was only fair to tell you." He curled his digits, eyes tracing how the light played with the metal as he moved. "The Eldest has begun to summon Ichthultu closer to the center of the Universe. It's a lure. Bait." The male demon turned his head towards her and dropped his hand to the banister. "The armies of Hell have practically overridden everything there. He plans to overwhelm you, sister."
Truth, utter truth in every word. An aftertaste of an ulterior motive, but every word was true. James was here to warn her and Hell was in control of the center of the Universe. That was bad, bad news.
"Ichthultu," she breathed as her eyes widened at the confirmation of her greatest and most feared suspicion. "That's what we've been fighting?" Raven asked the other half demon in a whisper. "An Old One?"
"You weren't aware?" James words held a taunting tone to them. His head lifting minutely as she caught sight of the calculating glint in his eyes. "Sister, please." He shook his head as though he were a tired parent who wasn't angry but just disappointed. "I thought you had more brains than that."
"I-" all of the times Danny had mocked the creature, calling it a Cthulhu wannabe at every opportunity, the numerous Lovecraftian references, all of it. Danny had been right. Or as close to right as one could get. Ichthultu was Cthulhu in reality, the fiction resulting in a Homo-Magi's scrying spell gone wrong.
Subconsciously, Danny had been closer to the truth than she ever had been. Of course, she had considered it an option, but without solid proof or a reliable description of the beast, she hadn't been able to pin it down or be certain of it. And yet Danny had called the creature Cthulhu from the get go. From the very first fight. He really was smarter than they both gave him credit for.
"I had hoped it was something else." She explained as she made a mental note to praise Danny's intelligence more and to let him know the creature's true nature. "The planets it will be summoned to. Will they be populated?"
James face contorted into a pitying look as he paused. She watched the other demon sigh and close his eyes while he turned his head away from her. His irritation flared through his aura like the sun in a camera's lens before it vanished without a trace, as if it had never existed. "Yes."
"Then I appreciate the warning, but it changes nothing."
"Oh, dear sister." James said the words through a chuckle as he shook his head sadly."It changes everything." Three words shouldn't sound so severe, and yet they did with the way they curled around her brother's tongue. It sounded like a death sentence. "Is there anything I can do to change your mind?" Brown eyes were hopeful as his head turned to look at her once more, his emotions reflected his face; desperate, hopeful, but resigned. He already knew her answer.
"No."
"Ah, that heroic hobby of yours. I'll never understand it." A tutt and another head shake before he straightened his posture. "You are Trigon's spawn. We are made for destruction and death. Yet you try to pretend you are above such things."
"Why are you pretending you're any different from the others?" Raven accused with a head tilt, her eyes narrowed in suspicion as she watched. James blinked in surprise and took a second searching look at her form. "Approaching me with civility? Warning me? It can't be of the goodness of your heart, if you believe yourself to be inherently evil."
He hummed as he regarded her, head sliding ever so slightly to the side. "What a shame it is we are on opposing sides. Your sheer power and intellect would insure you any position of power you'd ever want."
The demoness scowled and crossed her arms over her chest. "You didn't answer the question."
"Because I saw no reason to." He replied with a shit eating grin as their gazes locked into a staring contest. Her eyes, determined and his, filled with trepidation.
Finally, James sighed, his posture loosening slightly with the exhale. "I hated Father." The brother turned from her, his eyes going to the stars as he reflected on his past. "Hated him with every fiber of my being." The words were almost a whisper, had they been any quieter Raven would not have been able to understand them, as the noise from the room nearby was too great a sound. "Up until his demise, I was Father's primary punching bag. No more than a mere outlet for his frustrations." James' eyes flashed red before he squeezed them shut, he bit at his lip before he turned to look at her once more. His gaze matched his emotions, full of anger, vindication, determination, and pain. "I was a failure in his eyes. Thus, the source of all of his problems."
"I... See."
"Do you?" His laugh held no humor in it, it was as full of irritation as the rest of him. "Then you must understand why I have a soft spot for the woman who ended my eternal torment?" James said as he pushed himself from the balcony, his hands clenching and unclenching from fists as though he wanted to strangle something. "Why I wish you would stop doing what's best for the Universe? Why I wish we could be allies instead of enemies?" He glared at her, anger rising in the air and becoming thick enough to taste. He looked away from her and took a quick breath.
"Plus, it doesn't hurt that, unlike the rest of our brothers, you are more scholarly than scrappy." James noted and the anger was repressed, palpable in his aura, but suppressed behind a mostly functioning emotional wall. "As an intellectual, I admire your intelligence."
"We don't have to be enemies."
"We do."
The hissed words echoed against the stone walls as music flowed between them. They stood at opposite ends of the balcony; she, basking in the light and he, hidden in the shadows. The pause in their conversation stretched out as they read each other. Their emotions spoke for them as they argued and as they came to an understanding. She didn't know why he wouldn't change his ways, and he seemed to be upset that she refused to change hers.
"You seem to know a lot about me." Raven finally broke the silence, a curiosity too strong to keep quiet any longer. A fact too disturbing to be ignored.
"It's an inevitability, that's all." He wrote off with a wave of his hand, honesty radiating from his auda like a beacon. "You are an oddity in the underworld. Demons of all kinds watch as you go about your life. With your thinking that you have the capacity for good..." a chuckle James couldn't contain escaped from between his lips. "I can't begin to tell you how many eyes are on you. Watching around the wards. Waiting for you to fail." He paused and his face became cruel, a nasty kind of glee at her sake. "Waiting for you to fall."
"Like Lucifer."
"Exactly." He whispered as he took two steps towards her, pausing as he watched for her reaction. "And ever since your stint with the Earthen Empire, countless demons have been wondering how long it would take for you to break."
"Break-?" He cut her and her rising indignation off before it could get off the ground.
"Tell me, sister." He demanded in a holier-than-thou delivery as he began to walk to her right.
"How easy was it to decide to kill?"
Breath rushed into her lungs to soothe the pain that sprouted in her breast, but it wasn't enough to balm.
"You were raised as a pacifist, were you not?"
Another strike, his words like knives in her heart. Her mouth was open but she couldn't force the air down her throat.
"How many hours did you agonize over the decision?"
She couldn't breathe, the guilt was pulling her down, down into the depths of despair and suffocating her.
"Did you truly think on it long enough?"
Stop-
"How many times did you debate it? Arguing that killing your opponents was better than their enslavement?"
When did he get behind her?
"Not that many?"
She snapped back to her body, head jerking as she turned to lock eyes on James as he circled her.
"You never spoke a word but the conflict could be seen each time you hesitated to raise your hand to strike."
She found her voice, "I-"
James didn't let her use it. "Does your beast know how much the weight of the lives you took is?" He pressed, leaning into her space as she leaned away.
"How thoroughly it haunts you as you desperately try to hide behind a veil of indifference?"
James continued, his voice nonchalant, the ask spoken as casually as a remark about the weather would be said. He suddenly remembered the importance of personal space, and stepped away but Raven still felt cornered. Out of control.
"A whole world of conflict upon your shoulders, spurred by your doubts, as you try to shoulder a mass that would have Atlas falter?" He asked as he walked to her left, her head trailing after him.
The words felt plucked from her very soul, all of these thoughts she had never voiced that eternally haunted her during her worst nights... They suddenly had a voice. These weren't just goads from James; they were her fears she had rarely dated to speak aloud. Things she had hidden into the depths of her mind and smothered with the here and now. She kept moving, kept herself too busy to think on the past. To think about her regrets. To second guess her decisions.
"Does he know you wonder if the lives you've taken could have found enough happiness to justify their continuation? Despite the circumstances and suffering they inevitability would have had?"
And here James was, voicing all of it as though it were obvious, as though each word he spoke wasn't a scalpel surgically removing every wall she had built up to protect herself from herself.
"Does he know how many nights you've spent awake? Unable to cease your thoughts as you question the validity of each and every kill you made in the name of mercy?" Anxiety spiked as Danny's concern mounted on her own and she knew, she knew, he needed to stay away.
James was dangerous. He'd dismantled Raven's justifications with herself in mere minutes. Picked and chose her insecurities and prayed upon them like he'd read her mind.
He was very, very dangerous.
Especially to Danny, a man who already struggled enough with his mental health.
She moved away from James and back towards the balcony's doors as she sent Danny a wave of reassurance that she was alright. She didn't feel alright, she felt on the verge of-
"As you wonder, 'who am I to play God?'"
"Enough!" She screamed her hands flying up to press against her ears. Anything to stop herself from listening to him. The lighting fixtures all around her sparked as their canisters shattered and the shadows closed in to wrap around her in a dangerous vortex of magic.
Raven took in a shaky breath of air, in a desperate attempt to recenter herself. She found James watching, his aura unreadable, blank in his emotions as she tried to put herself back together.
"He knows enough."
"Hm..." He felt so cold. Whatever James was thinking in that moment, Raven had no way to gleam it. Nothing gave the smallest inkling of what his thoughts could possibly be. "I apologize, sister." He didn't sound very apologetic at all. The slightest upturn at the apex of the curve of his lips, the glint in his eyes... Malicious. "I got away from myself in my eagerness for answers."
"You're terrible at making people feel appreciated."
He chuckled and the tension between them vanished. Gone was the predator, returned was the man completely at ease to make conversation with a long lost relative. "I truly am. Forgive me, I should not have asked such things."
"Fine." It wasn't really fine. She felt unbalanced and uneasy at his words. The spoken insecurities and anxieties that she had managed to smother for so long, suddenly being drawn into the light so accurately was unsettling to say the least. "Any other tips or advice you wish to share? Since you admire me so much."
His half smile showed off his fangs as he looked at her with, as crazy as it was, pride of all things. Wasn't he destroying her mental state mere moments ago? Why was he proud? "As a matter of fact, yes." The words were comparable to that of a cat's purr as they curled over his tongue. "Jared is very prone to anger, and his combat abilities could even exceed your beasts. I would tread lightly the closer to the universe's center you go." He advised as he brushed at the upper folds of his suit, cleaning away the invisible lint. "Move carefully, slowly to not draw his attention."
"Jared? Is he another brother?"
"Yes, he is our strongest brother. He succeeded Father and became Lord shortly after Father's demise." And the truth rang out so strongly, there was no question to the validity of his words. Jared was the successor. Jared was the one in charge. Jared was the Oldest. "He is very much like Father and cannot be underestimated."
And yet, there, just underneath the surface of his emotions, cloaked behind the radiance of the truth, was a subtle hint of guile. It was gone before she could fully process it and she was half convinced she'd imagined it. Especially since she was still reeling from that unsettling conversation earlier. It could have been her looking for reasons to distrust him.
"Jared." She whispered, her chin in her hand as she kept James in her sight at the corner of her vision. "Is he the one summoning Ichthultu?"
"Oh, I doubt he's seeing to it personally. He's a very busy half-demon after all." A casual wave of his hand, his head turning away from hers. A deflection, a dismissal James refused to elaborate on. "He's probably assigning underlings for a task so droll."
She paused as she regarded him, his form appeared lax and at ease, not a single sign in his body language or aura that implied he was lying, and yet why did it feel like he was?
Finally, she sighed and gave up, filing away this encounter into the part of her mind to replay and recount until the mysteries were solved. "Is that all you had for me?"
"Yes," He purred as he straightened his suit and turned the rest of his body from her. "I'm not foolish enough to bring an actual gift. You wouldn't trust me enough to keep it."
"You aren't wrong." Came her easy agreement, Danny was growing restless, mere moments from joining them on the balcony, his ectoplasm could be sensed by the door, but his body was well hidden and out of sight. "Well, I appreciate the information, but I have other places to be."
"Of course," he spoke the words around a chuckle as he stepped into the darkened corner of the balcony. "Take care, sister!" The shadows parted and a bright, fiery, red light glowed ominously behind him. His silhouette's shadows somehow looked even darker against the harsh light of Hell.
"Oh! And let your beast know it looks much better than it did the last time I scried it." Those last few words felt false. They contained a tone of disdain she didn't understand, a sarcasm she could feel the aftertaste of in the atmosphere, barely there but palpable in its venomous nature. "Whatever it's doing, must be working wonders." Came his last words before he parted. The projected amusement had been overwhelmed by the sheer hatred that had flooded the balcony as James stepped back into the shadows and vanished from her senses.
And then she was alone. Raven felt as though she had been left with more questions than answers.
She was not on her own for long.
"So..." Danny asked slowly as he joined her on the balcony. His tone was light but his eyes were drawn in concern. "Who was that?"
"My brother." He frowned.
"Another one?"
"Yes."
Silence filled the space between them as Danny came to terms with her information. He watched her, eyes drawn to how she was leaning too hard on the railing. He probably noticed her pale complexion the moment he'd joined her. Raven probably looked as disheveled as she felt if Danny's mounting concern was anything to go by.
"What did he want?" He asked as he stepped into her space, his hand hovering around her own but refusing to be the one to initiate touch.
"He-" the demoness took his hand in hers, the ice cold of his skin was exactly the shock she needed to regain her equilibrium. "He wanted to warn me of Jared's plans."
"Is..." Danny began, his eyes searching hers. He must have found what he was looking for quickly, as he continued the sentence without too long a pause. "Jared another brother?"
"Yes. But it felt odd." The words rushed out of her too quickly. "He-" She floundered, her free hand flying up to press against her brow, palm rubbing into her cheek. "He felt both honest and dishonest." Raven admitted as she closed her eyes and rubbed at her temple. "I don't know how to describe it."
When she opened them, Danny was inches away from hugging her. The expression on his face was far too conflicted for her liking, so she moved the hand at her face towards him and pulled the halfa into an embrace.
He held her loosely, ready to let go at a moment's notice. And, when that moment never came, he sighed and melted into the hug like her mere presence was enough to banish the anxiety that had been brewing in his belly.
"... Do you wanna dance?" The whispered ask brushed past the hair at her ear, the light tickle made her move towards his lips. "I promise not to step on your toes."
A small huff of a laugh managed to escape her. "Sure."
They weren't really dancing, more a swaying to the slow music that had been beating against the windows. She moved her head to bury it into his chest, unwilling to face him while she finished recollecting herself. Raven hated that James' words would haunt her.
Even more than how right he had been.
Danny's ever moving hands were still against her back, a feat she knew was a triumph to suppress against the strengths of his need for self stimulation.
Finally, he spoke. "... Do you trust him?" In the brief moment it took for her indignation to rise and for her mouth to open to correct him and his assumptions (she did not trust that man), Danny beat her to the punch to revise the question. "The info, I mean."
She paused and the emotion vanished, back to the blank slate she was so desperate to regain. "Yes. It was sincere." She whispered into his chest, her face buried between his pectorals as she admitted her failure. Failure to realize what was happening. Failure to stop James' words from hurting her. Failure to stop herself from hating what she had done, even after rationalizing it as often as she had.
"We're being lured into a trap."
"Oh." The utterance escaped him just before he stopped the swaying of their bodies. He felt calm, calmer than he had in a long, long time. Not a single tense muscle in his torso, not a single tight tendon in his hands. "Well, that's their problem, then."
She inhaled at his words as she pulled her head away from his core to look at him. At his sheer confidence that they would be able to handle anything and everything thrown at them.
Because he was right. They could handle it. As long as they were together. "Yes. Yes, exactly." She whispered with a smile that he returned tenfold, the hint of a fang peaking out from beneath his top lip. A glint of excitement in his eyes at the thought of a challenge, at the prospect of getting to fight the people who had caused them so much pain.
Head on and side by side.
"That's their problem."
LESS IMPORTANT NOTE: I think I want to change the name of the fic. I've been thinking about this for a while and 'Moving right along' was like, an inspired moment when I was just desperate to prove myself and get the fic on paper and out the door. It works for the themes, I've pondered over it endlessly and in the end, I don't think it's the best name fit for this story. So I'm thinking I'll change it. But when and to what remains an unknown.
When would be the right time to rename it? At the end of the fic or during? And suggestions are open. I kinda like "Eternity in a Nutshell", "Chasing Ghosts and Battling Demons" and "Searching for our Sanity (that was lost along the way)". Stuff like that. Either something punny or hinting at the perils of living forever. Anyway, it's just something to think about that I probably won't bring up again until another six months have passed AT LEAST. There's still so many big chapters and so many more updates to make before I can close this bad boy that there really is no rush in making a decision. I just figured a heads up and a slight cry for help could be a good thing.