Everything was just so…

Disappointing.

Ivy tried to sing, but it just… wasn’t right. It sounded fine enough, her voice rising and falling normally, but the feelings just weren’t there behind the notes. It felt empty, like a shell of a song.

How desperately she wanted to be happy, and she knew she should be. They were finally going back to Hollis, the one place she truly wanted to be. Though it had never really been her home, she had always wanted it to be, and now with Ren and Zero the likelihood of that dream becoming a reality finally seemed in reach.

However, the reason for their return was less than thrilling.

And that put a damper on everything around her.

The girl wiggled her fingers, her hand starting to go numb from the tighter than normal grip around hers. She peered up at Zero, his jaw offset, crimson narrowed and staring forward, lost in a private dread. It was unsettling to see the devil this way, his calm and observant demeanor abandoned, replaced with quiet apprehension.

But she couldn’t blame him when she felt exactly the same way.

“Zero.” Ivy tugged at his hand. “You’re squeezing too tight. I can’t feel my hand anymore.”

The boy blinked several times, the fog clearing from his eyes, before looking down at her, finally realizing the meaning of the words just spoken to him. “Oh.” He loosened his hold. “Sorry.”

She pulled her hand free and snaked her arms around his so that neither of them would have to worry about his grasp. Her gaze crept back up, noticing he’d gone back to the dead end stare.

Surely, there was something she could do to help ease their troubles.

Ivy sighed and looked ahead, watching the demon’s bushy tail swish back and forth without a care as she led the way. “You know,” she tested her voice, making sure it had the right amount of pep. “I really don’t mind the cloak. It’s actually really nice without the hood on. And it keeps the sun off of my skin so I don’t get too warm. But at the same time, keeps the warmth in so that I don’t get chilly. It really is a great cloak. I honestly don’t know why I don’t wear it more. I should…”

“We’re going,” Sakura interrupted dryly.

Maybe if she tried honesty? “I really don’t want to. I would rather wear the cloak for the rest of my life. Please. I’ll never complain about it again. I promise.”

“I don’t care if you want to or not,” her voice was set, and the girl knew there would be no arguing with the woman. “We’re doing it. Even with the cloak on, it’s too big of a risk to have you running around with those wings exposed. You two can stay at the cottage. I’ll deal with Maggie on my own.”

The girl knew that wasn’t true even though the demon would try. There was no way that the witch would allow it. The old woman thrived off of the torment of others, drank it like the finest wine, and she would demand that they all be there in order for her to feast from all of them. It’s what made her so lucrative, her spells so powerful. There were plenty of witches, all who thrived on different things; joy, love, sorrow. The ones who required positive auras were lovely and delightful to be around, and the ones who needed the negative auras reflected that.

Maggie was misery.

And she spread it so well.

“I don’t want you to deal with Maggie on your own,” Ivy moped softly, staring at her feet and blinking back the tears. “I don’t want you to have to listen to her and do whatever she wants you to do just so that it’s easy for me to hide my wings. I just want to wear my cloak forever and never see her again.”

The woman stopped suddenly in her tracks, the pair behind her being forced to follow suit, and she spun around, a giant, luminous smile lighting up her face. Marching over to the boy and girl, she squeezed herself between them, hooking her arms through theirs and continued down the path. “It’s going to be a long journey, nearly a fortnight,” she declared cheerfully. “And we are not going to be miserable the whole way. That horrible woman will draw enough of it while we’re there. We’re not going to start now and give her more to feed from. If we do that she’ll never die, and what could be worse than that?”

“Nothing,” Zero mumbled.

Sakura looked up at him tenderly, glad to see him venture out of his stupor. “Exactly. Look at me, Zero.” The boy obeyed. “Now smile.”

He made his best attempt to do so, and the vixen grimaced at the sight. “Not good?” he asked, not actually needing to hear the answer to know it.

“No… no… terrible, actually. But that’s okay, I understand. That was a lot of pressure, you panicked. You’ll do better next time.” She patted his arm sympathetically before turning to Ivy. “Your turn.”

Naturally, the fae beamed brilliantly at the demon, the absolute picture of perfection.

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“There you go.” Sakura kissed the girl’s forehead. “Isn’t that better?”

Ivy giggled her agreement before turning her head and peering back at the angel who had uncharacteristically fallen behind and was silently kicking rocks down the path as he lingered after them. “What about Ren?”

The demon didn’t even bother to waste a momentary glance in his direction. “Don’t worry about him. He’ll get over it soon enough.”

“He seems like he’s having a really hard time. Shouldn’t we do something to help?”

Sakura chewed her cheek, wondering what Ren was planning this time. “There is no helping that man. He’s got issues that span further than you will ever understand. But it doesn’t matter, they’re not our problem. Leave him be. Trust me.”

The girl watched the angel, feeling sorry for him even though she was told not to. It wasn’t like him to be so quiet, so reserved, so withdrawn from everyone. Certainly, he must be hurting deeply to be behaving this way.

Ivy was well aware that Ren had often required the witch’s magic, and she could only imagine what horrors Maggie had put the poor man through. How much damaged she had inflicted on his body and psyche. How cruel she had been.

It broke her heart.

But as she continued observing him, she noticed that he wasn’t upset like the rest of them were.

And then, she realized that she had seen him this way before, plenty of times, just on a lesser scale.

Ren wasn’t actually upset at all.

He was scheming.

The girl wondered if the man was even phased at having to go to the mountains to request Maggie’s services, or if it would be just another day in paradise for him. She could see the creases in his forehead wrinkling and going smooth, the motion of his brows, how his lips created undecipherable words as he worked through the mutterings of his mind. He was just Ren being Ren, and Ivy decided that she didn’t want to get involved in whatever plans he was mulling over. She turned back, leaving the man to figure things out on his own.

“It shouldn’t take too long, probably sometime tomorrow, and we’ll be in Sistern.” Sakura smiled, looking between the devil and fae as she shimmied her body in excitement. “They have a very nice bookstore there.”

The girl gasped, instantly perking up and forgetting all about the angel. “The two-story one?!”

The woman nodded with enthusiasm. “Mmmhmm. We’ll get a room, and you two can spend all day there if you want. You can trade in the books you have, and I’ll give you coin for a few more. I’ll even put a couple in my bag for you.” Sakura normally wouldn’t. If she did, then Ivy would slowly, over time beg and plead and ultimately convince her to take more and more until there was no room left for anything else, and she had no interest in lugging around a heavy bag full of nothing but the girl’s reading materials. “Only a couple though. And together they can’t be thicker than my palm.”

The lovely fae couldn’t contain her excitement as she squealed and burst forward, skipping and twirling ahead of the group, singing a song that overflowed with her joy.

The demon looked up at the devil who watched Ivy and patted his cheek with the hand that had just been freed. “That’s a much better smile. Are you excited?”

“I am.” A hint of it in his voice.

The woman tightened her grip, and her smile sweetened while she rested her cheek against his shoulder and joined him in looking after the girl as they walked. Though it was often slow coming, she enjoyed being witness to all of the boy’s changing of emotions, no matter how small. “Good. Stay that way. I know Maggie is awful but the best thing you can do is try to stay positive. It really pisses her off and leads her to an earlier grave which is never a bad thing.”

Zero nodded as he took it into consideration. “Okay. Stay positive.”

“Just do your best. You don’t have to be perfect. I know very well how awful she is. Try not to let it get to you. We’ll be as quick as we can. Get in and get out with minimum nastiness from her.” Her grip tightened around the boy’s arm as she began considering how best to keep his and Ivy’s contact with the witch to a minimum. “I’ll do what I can to keep her attention and take the brunt of it, but you’ll just have to ignore the mean shit that slips through to you.”

His brow furrowed as smile turned to frown. “She’s not mean to me. I wish she was, it’d be better that way.”

Sakura was shocked, completely taken back by the information, as her head snapped up and she stared wide-eyed at the devil. “What do you mean she’s not mean? What is she?”

“She... likes me. A lot,” he mumbled pitifully, the confession obviously painful for the boy.

“Oh.” It was impossible to imagine the witch liking anyone or anything. “How does that work?”

But the devil said nothing as he stared off ahead, his eyes glazing over, losing himself once more to the sinking abyss of his dread which earned him a few light smacks from the demon.

“Nope! Stop! You’re not doing that anymore,” Sakura demanded, bringing him out of hiding. “Remember, Ivy and I will be there with you. It won’t be nearly as bad as it's been with just Ren. I’m sure he’s been useless.”

“He has.”

“Of course he has.” The woman wasn’t going to push it. She would find out for herself with her own eyes just how bad it was soon enough. Better to change the subject. Keep things on a positive note. “What kinds of books do you want to get in Sistern? What are you interested in?”

The boy’s eyes returned to the frolicking girl. “Ivy said she’d pick one for me in Sunnen, but we bought Jose one instead. I’d like her to pick one this time.”

“You really like her, don’t you?”

He looked down at her, eyes soft. “I love her.”

Sakura chuckled. “Well, that’s pretty obvious. I’ll send you with plenty of coin so make sure to buy one for yourself, and you can get one for Ivy, too.”

“I will.” And he turned forward again.

The woman’s eyes followed his and she continued to watch the girl with him. “You two suit each other. I’m glad you found her.”

“Me, too.”

Ivy turned, as if she knew, and came skipping back to link her arm back through the demon’s. “Do you think Ren will carry some books so that I can get one… maybe just two more?” she asked and gazed up at the woman sweetly.

“Don’t push it,” Sakura warned. There was no way the angel would tell the fae no, and the demon had already planned on quietly slipping the books she would receive into his bag.

The girl huffed lightly. She would try again later. But for now, she was perfectly delighted with what she had.

The woman released her arms and fell back, watching the boy and girl come back together, their hands finding each other without fail. Ivy turned to Zero and began talking about what books she wanted to get while he listened, interjecting only every now and then.

Sakura felt that familiar warmness in her chest.

Gentle and soothing.

They didn’t just suit each other.

It was as if they were one.