Luciano

Perpetua was crouched at your feet, knees close to his chest as he sat stock still. The sheer weight of him sitting at your bed should have woken you up, but after doing this so many times he was well practiced in not disturbing your sleep. His wings and tail were tightly folded against his body, while his clawed fingers gently rested atop his knees. He watched the moonlight dance across your skin and noted how beautiful you looked. His focus started to shift further towards you, but further away from his focus on remaining silent. A deep. rumbling purr escaped his throat as he watched your chest rise and fall, and it caused you to stir. He froze, holding his breath as he watched your next move. To his horror— you woke up. You slowly blinked awake, thinking you heard something in your room. You gained just enough consciousness to register that there was an unfamiliar weight on your bed, so you sat up and took in your surroundings as your eyes adjusted to the darkness.

There was a large figure at the foot of your bed, and your blood ran cold. Perpetua could hear your heart begin to pound in your chest and he could smell the sweat beading on your skin. He began to panic, unsure how to soothe you without scaring you in this state. Human speech failed him, and all he could think to do was to smile. To you though, shining in the darkness was a sinister grin full of razor sharp fangs. You let out a bloodcurdling scream as you frantically began putting as much distance between you and the shadowy figure as you could until your back hit the wall, tangling yourself in your blankets. Your scream scared Perpetua though, causing him to flinch. His movement combined with yours knocked him off his delicate balancing act and he fell backwards off the bed, hitting the ground with a heavy thud. "Fuck!" he cursed in pain, his voice a bit raspier than normal.

You froze, recognizing the voice that came from the figure. "Perpetua?" you asked cautiously, eyes darting around to find the easiest exit plan if you were wrong. He groaned as he held his head, already feeling a bump forming. You breath a heavy sigh of relief as you clutch your chest, it was definitely him. "Satan below, V! You scared the shit out of me! What are you doing? And what the hell are you wearing?" Your scolding and questioning came out much harsher than you intended, but you weren't very fond of being pranked while you slept. Perpetua sunk lower to the floor to hide himself, shame rapidly creeping in and making a home in his chest. You turned on the lamp on your bedside table and crawled your way to the foot of your bed, huffing. "I'm not in the mood for jokes, seriously—" You gasped as you were met with dark, leathery wings shrouding Perpetua's back. He slowly lifted his head to look up at you, his eyes meeting yours behind his signature mask. You took in every detail, from his pointed ears, down to the tip of his bony tail. He reminded you of a bat, in a way. You were surprised of course, but it was still him, and you had no reason to be afraid of him.

"It's not a costume..." he whispered, his gaze flicking away from you. "I'm sorry for scaring you, I know I'm a monster."

"Hey," you said, your tone sympathetic as you reached a hand down to him. "C'mere, it's alright." He looked at your hand for a few moments before he took it delicately in his own, claws wrapping around your palm. You urged him to stand up and he obeyed, standing up fully but still holding his wings close to his sides. "Can I see you? All of you?" You asked gently, rubbing the back of his hand with the pad of your thumb. He blushed underneath his paints as the shame inside him still burned hot, but he trusted you more than anyone. He took a deep breath, allowed himself to relax as he exhaled, opening his arms to reveal his full wingspan. You drank in the sight of him, and he was beautiful. A beautiful creature of the night, as you always knew him to be. You reached out to caress his wing, and he chittered happily at the touch. You chuckled at the sound, and Perpetua was fully at ease with you now. "Were you watching me sleep?"

His eyes widened in disbelief. "Wha— Like this?" he gestured to himself.

He looked away sheepishly. "I... Yes. I like to... check on you when I can't be with you," he admitted, his gaze darting around you as he was unable to look you in the face.

You smiled. "Aren't you sweet. My own personal gargoyle to protect me," you teased. His ears folded back as he tried making a displeased face, but he couldn't help but smirk a little, his fangs poking out from his lips. "Can I hold you for a while?"