The pungent smell of sex permeated the room. Yet, neither of the men sprawled on the floor seemed to notice, their minds too hazy to form coherent thoughts. The veil of pleasure was still clouding their eyes, and quick, shallow breaths escaped their slightly parted lips. A thin layer of sweat glistened on their skins, and strands of wet hair stuck to their foreheads, while their eyelids were so heavy they could barely lift them open. To put it in other words: exhaustion was written all over their faces.
"Alive…?" Jules finally asked.
"Somehow," Bastien answered in a hoarse voice, shifting his body slightly to look into the hunter's eyes. He was now lying on his back, his head resting on the man's laps. "You?"
"It seems like it."
"Glad to hear that," the demon snickered. "So, did your mind clear up?"
"…"
The hunter's mouth twitched. That guy knew the answer, yet he still asked.
His spiritual energy gradually stopped wreaking havoc as the incubus sucked off large chunks of it, and the desire to shed blood eventually abated. However, the sudden weakening of his spiritual energy and the disappearance of his bloodlust seemed to have left a void behind—some empty spot in the pit of his stomach. Not long after, symptoms of withdrawal started to creep up on him. His limbs felt weaker with each passing second, whereas his head throbbed in pain, his heartbeat seemingly pounding at his temples. Although the overflowing spiritual energy had been eroding his mind, it reinforced his body in exchange. After it receded, the accumulated fatigue crashed in and settled in every fiber of his being. Jules was also discovering muscles he didn't even know existed, everything aching. His mind was clear, but his body hurt like hell.
"By the way," Jules changed the subject, "where's your shirt?"
"A certain someone ripped it off my back," Bastien chuckled, drawing out a deadpan "ah" from Jules.
It had to be expected: the hunter had forgotten a few bits—well, the incubus had too, so he couldn't really talk. Feeding on spiritual energy was akin to drinking alcohol for his kind, and his mind had been thrown in a daze halfway through. His memory was a little blurry. But at least, his belly felt full, a feeling he hadn't experienced for thousands of years. It made him want to laze about, even though he knew he didn't have the leisure to.
"Anyway, it was already torn beyond salvation, so it doesn't matter. You just finished it off."
"Whatever you say, we can't exactly have you walk around half-naked," Jules sighed as he scanned the bathroom, his eyes landing on the laundry basket. A few folded clothes lay on it, probably spare clothing the werewolves had brought. "Also, your pants are a little too… dirty."
"Whose fault is it again?"
"Yes, yes, it's mine." Jules rolled his eyes at the demon's playful tone, stretching an arm to snatch the clothes on the basket and hand them over to Bastien. "I thought you'd look on the verge of death after eating, but you sure aren't. Actually, it'd be more accurate to say that you're quite lively for someone whose body should be about to explode."
Bastien answered with a smile, mirth sparkling in the depth of his eyes. The golden flickers were now gone, his irises back to their usual color. It was blue like the sky, beautiful and clear.
"So?" Jules's smile didn't reach his eyes, his voice growing colder. "Would you care to tell me what a "Primordial" like you is doing in the mortal realm?"
"I already told you," the demon shrugged. "I'm searching for a way to break my offsprings' curse and protect them in the meantime. Unfortunately, it isn't rare for the "fathers" to abandon or start to neglect and even abuse their daughters after their spouses' death. So, I more often than not take the kids under my wing. I'm a responsible ancestor, after all. It's just that considering my position, the guys in the upper realm hate my guts very much so. It makes it harder to find one willing to help and spare a bit of blood."
"I bet," Jules shook his head. He stayed silent for a second before asking, "Would the blood of a half do?"
"I don't know. After all, half-bloods like you are a rarity of rarities, and not much is known about their abilities."
Celestial beings didn't like to meddle with other species, and even when they did, the possibility of an offspring being born was extremely low—unlike demons, who had high fertility and loved to plant their seeds everywhere.
"Honestly speaking," Bastien continued after a short pause, "you're quite a strange one."
"I don't want to hear that from you," Jules snorted before bending over, closing the distance between their faces. "Speaking off, the next time you try to gauge my feelings, don't do it in such a roundabout way. I don't, and won't, hold you responsible for my father's death."
"You won't, really? If he hadn't sworn to give me a sample of his blood, I'm pretty sure the hunters wouldn't have hunted him down like a dog. Not so soon at least."
"Who knows? Hunters are greedy and narrow-minded people. They would have found another excuse to backstab him sooner or later."
"You don't seem very fond of your comrades."
"They can go rot in hell for all I care." Jules paused as if thinking of something. "Save for my team. They're good guys."
Well, that had the merit to be direct. It caught Bastien's curiosity, but the demon didn't dwell on the matter further, having a hunch his father's death wasn't the only reason Jules hated the hunters. If he wanted to talk about it, they would. Otherwise, Bastien wouldn't go around digging skeletons. Instead, he crawled to his feet to put on the clothes Jules had given him earlier. Though they were a bit tight, they would make do.
"By the way," Jules grunted, pointing the wings on his lower back with his thumb, "mind telling me how to put away these things? They're cumbersome."
"Sorry, taking on human forms is something intuitive to high demons. I don't know how to put it in words. Oh, come on, don't glare at me! You'll find the trick to it soon enough."
"I wouldn't be so sure of that."
From the tone of his voice, Jules wanted to get rid of the wings on the spot. He thought of folding them back but had no idea how, hence his question to the demon. He was not used to their weight, and their presence felt unnatural and uncomfortable. It made him want to tear them off. However, he refrained from doing so as he remembered that said wings were composed of bones, muscles, and nerves, just like any other limbs. In the end, he wasn't masochistic enough to mutilate himself.
Jules sighed, then stretched an arm toward the incubus. He didn't say anything, but the "help me up" look on his face spoke volumes. It made the demon chuckle, his voice sounding helpless. He was the one who had been done, so how come he had to help Jules stand up? His legs had long turned to jelly, and his old waist ached like hell! What a spoiled brat, honestly!
***
The door squeaked, and three heads snapped toward it in one swift motion. Bastien waved to the girls in the doorframe, a satiated smile stretching his lips. In contrast, Jules appeared conflicted as he stood by the demon's side. Leaving the girls alone for so long wasn't something the hunter was proud of, and as he laid eyes on the gruesome room, sharp pangs of guilt tugged at his conscience. This chamber wasn't what he'd call the best "waiting room" out there.
"Done?" Iris tentatively asked after a moment passed, her voice carrying a hint of caution. "How is Jules…?"
Bastien responded with a grin and made a victory sign, which earned him a disapproving look. However, Iris didn't comment and only shook her head. She was all too aware of what her ancestor's personality was like: the sky could be falling down, and his carefree way wouldn't change.
"Sorry," Jules finally said, coughing to hide his embarrassment—unlike the demon, he still had a sense of shame. "I'm fine now, and I shouldn't be snapping again anytime soon. I sincerely apologize for what happened."
"Apology accepted," Annabelle snorted, unfathomable emotions twirling in her pale gray eyes. Her gaze fell upon her brother's wings, which appeared particularly bright in the dim light. She stared at them for a while and could not help but think they were beautiful once again.
"But as you can imagine, I've got a shitload of questions to ask you—though that's gonna have to wait. If I stay in this room any longer, I'm the one who'll snap and go nuts."
Jules nodded in understanding. Even if Annabelle had seen her fair share of gruesome things in the past decade, it was easy to guess she'd rather not needlessly linger in a room filled with mutilated corpses and spilled guts. Besides, it wasn't exactly the ideal place to have a serious conversation, considering they couldn't even sit down. The atmosphere was too heavy, and the awful stench of urine and rotten flesh still floated around, making people's stomachs churn.
And to think that Jules had left the girls all on their own in such a place….. Even worse was that they had to wait for him and Bastien, not knowing when they'd return. He could not fathom what kind of thoughts they had while counting the seconds passing by.
Even seasoned hunters wouldn't necessarily be able to stand it. However, the girls were aware that the moment they stepped out of the chamber, they were at risk of being separated from Jules and Bastien. The room and the bathroom were connected, but the corridor was part of the interchanging maze. They could have gone out to wait in the less bloody corridor, but what if the door to the chamber closed by itself? Who knew what would happen next. The link between that chamber and the corridor could very well be broken, and opening the door again could lead to a different room. Thus, they had to grin and bear it.
Because of his muddled mind earlier, Jules hadn't considered this. Now, he felt mortified at the thought. Why did he have to snap now of all times…? He'd have to make amends later.
Oblivious to her brother's guilty conscience, Annabelle turned around and kicked the door open. Then, Iris nudged Melody forward, and Jules and Bastien followed closely behind.
Enough wasting time; they had to get along.
_______________________
Edited by Clozed! ♥
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BTW! I forgot to say I shared a NSFW picture from last chapter in the discord. I commished an artist I adore to draw that scene between Jules and Bastien, hehe!