heavenly.

The brunette pounded at her sister’s front door, desperate to make quick contact with her. (She hadn’t taken into account that it might have frightened her further). “Alice!” she called out, knocking a few more times, “it’s Ren! Please open up. I have snacks and comics to cheer you up.” As though any of that would lessen the trauma of finding a lifeless body.

She shrugged, not particularly caring one way or another how Serenity felt.  “You’re assuming your opinion matters even an ounce to me.  You’re like a ghost or an echo.  You pass through other’s lives making no difference.  I would say go find someone who actually cares, but that is rather impossible.”

.

Serenity simply rolled her eyes and scoffed at the demon. “Unfortunately, if you seek to cause pain or insecurity with your words, you’ve picked the wrong virtue. I admire your dedication to the matter, however.” She sighed and smiled at the other. “Might I suggest a few perfumes to mask your pungent smell, though? I can only imagine the amount of comments you get due to the constant aroma of rotten eggs around you. Maybe if you smelled better, you’d be a kinder person.”

She couldn’t hear her sister’s words of solace, but the emotions were still felt.  Humility held on tightly as she let the tears fall.  “If who I am is taken away then what am I Pat?  What do I have to live for?  I’m nothing but my namesake,” she sobbed out.

.

“You have everything to live for,” she replied, her voice stern yet soft. Patience gently stroked Humi’s back, hoping it might bring even the slightest bit of comfort. “You are still Humility. You are still the embodiment of that. Virtues are not meant to be perfect, we are not built to exude perfection. Nothing our father built was.” She sighed, desperate to find the right words. “You made a mistake, sister. No one in the kingdom of Heaven can judge you for that. And if they do? I will gladly put every last one of them in their place.”

Esme felt the warmth of the others lips linger long after she pulled them away. The urge to grab the other and push her up against the closest wall and ravage her was hard to hold back, but she knew what Serenity wanted and she would give her that and more when they arrived at their destination.

“Oh Ser, after all this time, you think I could possibly forget about you?” She shook her head. “You my sweet are unforgettable.” She said as she followed willingly to their final destination.

-many hours, maybe even days later-

Esme watched as Serenity slept peaceful next to her, her hunger for the other woman, finally satiated, at least for now. She couldn’t help the soft happy smile on her lips as she listened to the steady breathing of the other. When she saw the others sleepy eyes slowly open, she reached up running her fingers through her hair. “Good morning lovely.” She said softly. “How are you feeling this morning?” She asked a small smirk playing at her lips.

.

As daylight slowly crept in through the window, Serenity’s eyes began to flutter open. Much to her delight, Esme was there. Just as it did every time Patience found Lust, her heart swelled. She wasn’t sure if virtues and sins were supposed to love, let alone love one another, but she couldn’t deny the intense feelings she had for the other. “You’re so beautiful,” she whispered, her voice a bit raspy from sleep. She hummed a bit at the sensation of her fingers running through her hair, a sleepy little smile appearing on her lips. 

The virtue slowly propped herself up on her elbows and stared at Esme for a moment, taking in all of her beauty. “I’m lovely. Better knowing that you’re here,” she finally responded. She reached out one of her hands to touch Esme’s, cherishing the contact between them. “How are you, my love? Did you sleep well?” 

“Serenity, pleasure to meet you. I’m Fanish” he introduced himself to her after she’d taken the courtesy to do so herself. “Would you like some help with that?” he asked, even though she had just taken the box from him. “Free up your arms some”

-

“Oh no, that’s fine,” she replied, “I know I look small but I promise that I am mighty. Please give me a moment, however.” With that, Serenity took a brief moment to bring the box to her tiny ‘office’ so she could sort them later. Returning to the man, she clasped her hands in front of her waist and smiled. “Is there anything else I can help you with, Mister Fanish?”

Esme would never admit it out loud, but this was her favorite game of all those she played. She loved to find Serenity and toy with her out in public. The blush the formed on her cheeks, the small innocent smiles she often wore. Lust was something people felt, Esme could except that, she could understand that. What she didn’t understand was the pull that Serenity always seemed to have on her. She had tried to fight it the first millennia or two they had known each other, but at some point along the way, Esme just gave into their little trysts and enjoyed every minute of them.

And this time was going to be no different. She gave her knowing smile when she teased about her heart. “But I thought you didn’t like it when I was gentle Ser.” She said breaking character, her tongue swiping across her lips. “Primavista sounds perfect.” 

.

Ah, there it is, she thought. The virtue exhaled a sigh of relief and smiled at Esme’s words. Deep down, she knew that having any sort of soft feelings for one of the deadly sins should be forbidden, but she couldn’t stop herself. “I like anything you do,” she replied softly, before leaning in and pressing a brief kiss to the woman’s cheek. 

She tightened her grip on Esme’s hand and pulled her forward a bit, urging her to move with her. “I was beginning to worry that you had forgotten about me,” she confessed as she began to walk forward. “Beautiful. I’m glad that we agree, though, I’d go wherever you asked, m’dear.” 

Chandler pouted at his friend and nodded. “Alright, alright. I think I need to tell my girlfriend I want to slow down, like our relationship I mean.” He told her honestly. “I’ve got… A lot of issues I need to work on with myself. Some stuff I haven’t unpacked since I was younger.” He sighed. “What do you think?” He asked her with a shrug. “Do you think… If I’m honest with her, she’ll take it well?” He asked. “I was thinking of trying therapy.” Chandler continued. 

.

Serenity released a long, deep sigh. She really felt for Chandler’s situation and was genuinely concerned about seeing her friend be hurt. “Can I be honest for a moment?” She paused after posing her question as she tried to figure out the exact way to word what she had to say. “I feel like you’ve already answered your question yourself, my dear. If you thought she was going to take it well, wouldn’t you have told her first instead of asking me? Chandler, I have been around for millenia, and it usually plays out the same way.” She offered him a sweet smile, as though that might actually soften the blow of what she was about to say. “If you have baggage, perhaps you should take a break and work on yourself in therapy. It will hurt but if she’s worth it, I’m sure she’ll understand and be patient.” 

The witch giggled as she tossed her bag on the table.  “God, right?  Some of those guys smell weird too,” she said, scrunching up her nose.  Lizzie shrugged as she sat opposite Serenity.  “Eh, talking’s cool.  I just like coming here sometimes.”  She pulled out her laptop, Kumo’s book, and her notepad before looking back over to Serenity.  “What’re you doing?”

.

“I’m not surprised by that at all,” Serenity chuckled. Why of all places, did she have to end up in a town where all the women were breathtakingly beautiful? It was a cruel twist of fate that she was not particularly fond of. Her attention turned back to her own laptop as she struggled to find the words to speak. “Oh, not much. Working on a few things for the Hope House. It’s rather boring but I quite enjoy the mundane sort of work.” 

She nodded slowly, appreciating her sister being here to be her pillar.  “I…I don’t fully understand what happened but I became a vampire that night.  I couldn’t control it.”  Humility could feel tears welling up.  Even though she had shared her pain with Reyna, it was still hard to talk about that night.  “I-I hurt people.  Killed others.  I-I couldn’t stop myself no matter how much I wanted to.”  

.

Patience wasn’t sure there was anything she could say to console her sister. It was a heartbreaking situation, but one that she herself had never been in. All she could do was empathize and offer a shoulder to lean on. Without a word, she wrapped her arms around her sister in a warm embrace. One hand raised to stroke Humility’s hair. “I’m sorry that you have to live that, Humi. I wish I could do something to take that burden away from you.” 

“She’s from Brazil … I chose her because I thought she was beautiful and driven, and I wanted to be seen in that way,” Reyna admitted. “She didn’t take to me initially, but once she understood my desires she fell quiet. I haven’t heard her in a while, so she might’ve passed on by now.” She shrugged. “An unfortunate side-effect of taking vessels.” She tilted her head, studying Serenity curiously. “Is this Georgia Peach still in there? Or have you taken over completely?”

.

“Not to be a mood killer, but why does consent seem to be a forgotten concept with sins and demons? It’s so important in every facet of life; I find it sad that it’s not acknowledged more.” The idea of Reyna’s vessel no longer being there hurt her, mostly because the body of the woman she inhabited moved on already as well. She frowned a bit and cleared her throat. “She moved on a while ago, sadly. There was... an accident, of sorts. Without me inhabiting her body, she would have perished anyway. I suppose that’s why I haven’t found a new one. It’s a way to keep her alive. She was such a bright spirit; she was an activist, a humanitarian. Such a lovely, lovely soul.” 

“Well, it was either stop or trip over you, so I didn’t have much of a choice,” Gabi said with a faint smirk. She held her hand out to the other to shake. “Gabriela. My friends call me Gabi.” She gestured to the bags. “Stressful day? I find retail therapy to be one of my best friends some days.”

.

“I would have caught you,” she blurted out without thinking. Why did she always find herself flirting in the worst situations? “Gabriela is a beautiful name.” Serenity glanced down at the bags in her hands and paused for a moment, so lost in thought. “Uh, yeah, kind of. I was getting some things for the shelter and then I couldn’t resist buying things for myself. By the time I left the third store, I had already bought too much and found myself getting overwhelmed. It’s my own fault.” 

Ori let out a scoff as Serenity took back the blouse.  “Oh, you think I would wear that ugly piece of shit?  That’s cute.  You know what, you’re right.  It matches you perfectly.”  

.

Serenity scoffed at the demon’s attempt at an insult. “Was that supposed to hurt my feelings?” The virtue raised a brow and rolled her eyes. “Honey, the angels say worse things than that. Not to mention, I’ve heard more painful insults from school aged children. I suppose your time on Earth has softened you. It was very sweet of you to try, though.”

“You have some of our lovely library goers to thank for these honestly” he smiled after she had thanked him for the donation. “Hopefully I will have another box next month filled with even more books to donate.”

.

“I can’t tell you how much we appreciate it. It’s the little things like this that truly make people’s days a bit better.” Still holding the box in her hands, she looked the man over. He seemed kind, scholarly. What a good soul. “My name is Serenity, by the way. I’m beyond pleased that you came in today. I’d shake your hand but my arms are a touch preoccupied.”