She held her claw up. Her sister followed her move, more slowly, curiously. Looking up and down, she began to near her hand to hers, watching carefully her every move. Their eyes would meet constantly, analyzing each other carefully.

Ariel finally laid her claw against Aurora’s. Opening up her hand with hers, she examined her small black nails, small enough to compare to the ones of a feline.

“Mines are bigger.”

The toddler did not seem to like her affirmation. Her sister suddenly clasped her teeth, and with a small glare, flapped open her small wings. She seemed to be challenging her, with only a pout and a slight lean.

Ariel just looked at her with an amused smile, tail swaying calmly. Aurora saw that she had failed to impress her, and soon backed down in her revolt; her wings dropped down, slowly, folding as much as possible. Her head lowered to give her a timid stare, while still looking behind her blond fringe.

Aurora’s behavior did not surprise Ariel. Uriel had told her once, that when she was much younger, she had tried to bite one of his horns. She did not manage to even scratch it of course; he just grabbed her and let her down with a sigh. She did not remember, but she believed it. Young demons usually had surges, in which they tried to impose, show their strength to the biggest opponent. A common play, not really a show of aggression, similar to what wolf pups would do to their pack.

She had been quite persistent and adamant in showing off when she was a baby. But her sister on the other hand… she was not as confident and valiant. While playing together, she sometimes would suddenly react to her closeness with apprehension. Every time she tried to begin a game of tug, she would puff her chest out and try to make herself look bigger. Only to whine and deflate with a nervous look after, as soon as Ariel moved one single inch to retaliate playfully. Sometimes, her little claws would get a hold of her long tail, but as soon as she moved it in her hold, she would yelp and let go, to crawl away and hide behind some furniture. Her eyes would glare at first with intent, but then go wide with surprise when faced with a possible threat. Well, the biggest threat an infant could face.

She had the instinct to contest, but she did not have the confidence to carry it through. She had Ayako’s impulse, and Alexis’ infirmity. It was a strange mix.

Ariel reached for one of Aurora’s wings, she teased and tried to begin another game of cat and mouse. The little demon gasped, much less vocal than Ariel had been. Batting her wings away, she let out a little growl and dodged as well as she could: falling sideways.

When Ayako entered the room two minutes later, she did to the sight of Ariel standing nervously next to a shelf of books. Her oldest daughter jumped a little when she realized she was there, and quickly hid her hands behind her back, holding her tail nervously.

As she examined the room warily, Ayako spoke, questioning with a suspicious tone.

“Where’s your sister, Ariel?”

Ariel gulped, and then smiled nervously, letting her fangs show. While swaying a foot, she ended up giving a shy apologetic look to those firm icy eyes. She then glanced slightly upwards.

Ayako was not surprised when she followed Ariel’s gaze. Slightly above her, at the top of the bookshelf, she caught the glint of two bronze wings. Two blue eyes slowly peeked from the edge, as timid as Ariel’s. The two sisters where looking at her with a fallen stance, like a pup would after being caught shredding a cushion.

Ayako spoke to Ariel with a deadpanned look on her face, knowing she could not reach the top of the bookshelf.

“Go get Alexis or Uriel. They are taller.”

“Y-yes, right now!”

Hurriedly, she left the room with a fast pace, not daring to look at her mother’s eyes. She had been told already not to tease Aurora, because this had already happened. When nervous, the little demon liked to climb. Much more than Ariel had.

Ayako blinked, seeing her young daughter on the move. The blonde had lost interest in her presence, and with Ariel gone, had begun to look down around her to find something else to play with. Those little wings of hers were beginning to flap at her sides while she leaned forward, clinging to the edge. Her intent stare on the nearby table was all too obvious.

Before she could take a leap, she was startled by Ayako’s booming yet soft voice, which echoed up to her.

“Don’t you move a feather.”

Aurora instantly backed off the edge, without letting out a sound under her stare.

———————

Her eyes were fixed, sitting impatiently. Her claw brushed the soft fur of the rabbit at her side, time and time again. She was waiting on Alexis’ bed, staring at him as he worked at his desk. The minutes felt hours. She could not stop fidgeting and moving her wings, much to the annoyance of their pet, who wanted to sleep.

At the desk, Alexis worked with narrowed eyes, focus high. Said focus was disrupted again, when she spoke with much more than a whisper.

“Is it done?”

He did not care how many times she would ask. He answered once more, refusing to ignore her eager and hopeful questions.

“Not yet. Just a few minutes, okay? I know I told you it was almost finished, but I want to give it a few touches. It only needs one last cut.”

She waited patiently once more, quiet; her wings less so. It was only a few minutes until Alexis turned around and nodded for her to come see what he had been working on. Abiel yelped and bounced on the bed, because she jumped off of it sharply. She almost flew to her father’s side. She leaned over him, to peek at his work.

“It’s an owl!”

Alexis nodded, smiling at her fondly, even if tired. Watching carefully her stance, he only moved his carving knife when he was sure she would not try to reach for the figure in his hands. He gave the wooden toy a few more cuts, trying hard to make it look good.

“Yes, an owl. I think; it was supposed to be an eagle.” She did not care what it was; she only wanted to receive another precious gift from him. A handmade figurine, like so many others, which she kept like treasures somewhere. “I just hope you won’t hide it and play with it for a longer while.”

She smiled sheepishly, putting her hands away. She could not help herself, not when she would see him work on them for so long.  She was afraid of them breaking. The first one he had made for her was forever lost; she had felt her first heartbreak when she had broken it. Her teeth had hurt, her fangs growing… and she had bitten on it without thinking. She hid all the rest to keep safe, even from herself.

He did not really care what she did with the toy, as long as it made her happy. By blowing some air onto it, he got rid of any remaining splinters on its surface. Weighting it on his hand first, he glanced at her, offering it with proud words.

“Here you go. Don’t play with it in the basement, okay? We may not find it if you drop it there.”

“I won’t!”

Regretting having lost the figurine of a cat to Abiel’s playfulness once, she decided which was the best place to play today. She ran out the door and sat at the corridor of his room, close enough, but away from the rabbit. He wondered how she could make the owl have a fictional conversation with an armor outside, but he guessed all kids did implausible things.

He outstretched a little, cracking his bones with a groan, having sat there for a long while. Aurora looked up when he got out of his room. He closed the door behind him gently, not before letting Abiel out. Giving her one last smile, he walked away, tying his cape around his neck.

“I’ll be outside. I hope you want some pumpkin soup, because that’s what we will have for dinner.”

He liked to mess with her. She made a face, never having been a vegetable lover. She did not know that he was joking, and that Uriel would probably make some meat for her and her sister, diligently brought from Ayako’s hunts. He had never enforced his diet on her, as he never did on Ariel. While looking at her, he liked to think that a diverse meal had helped her wings grow.

It was with that same care that he walked away, sure that she would be fine playing and inventing story tales all by herself. It was Ariel who had first shown her to use her own imagination; as much as she still played with her, she wanted her to be distracted while she did chores.

With him gone, she looked again at her little owl. The open wings of the figurine were bigger in her mind. Holding it up, she made it fly onto the armor’s arm, resting it there like if it was a gigantic tree.

She always found comfort near Alexis’ room. She felt safe, inexplicably drawn to the places he roamed. When he would lock himself in his room to tinker, she would sneak into the garden outside and lay down in between the plants. When he worked in the garden, she loved to get into his room, and try to play under his bed. It always was Ariel who would find her and convince her to reveal her hiding spot.

Today however, she could not get inside the room. With the door closed, she could not push it inwards. She was far too small yet, and she lacked Ariel’s horns. As much as she envied her for having them, she would not try to mimic her to open it; she lacked her venturing nature.

She frowned and stared at the big wings of the owl. Pondering, she brushed her own, parting feathers and noting their small size. Sadly, her wings lowered, gone her intent of leaping for a door handle. Playing less excitedly, she sat there at the corner of the hallway, looking up longingly at the tall armor. Everything towered around her; everything looked down on her. Ariel rarely let her get close to the guests; somehow, she felt her sister wanted to keep her safe of their towering stares.

She could climb onto the armor, she could bat her wings and get a hold of the handle… but she didn’t. In the past, she had been scolded for standing on the furniture, for climbing onto things. She had clawed many tables accidentally, in her small ventures to high places. She did not want to get looked at any more, even if her family always softened their gazes on her. She would feel the eyes of the visitors of the manor, their curiosity gone under their apprehension, as soon as she got close enough. Only they made her feel at ease.

That was why she tucked her wings close when a man walked by. He merely eyed her, but it was enough to make her inch against the wall and look away timidly. That man seemed to be inspecting the corridor, taking his sweet time; but she did not pay him mind. Toying with her owl, she ignored what was supposed to be normal behavior from the humans. Guests always roamed the halls and rooms, the patio and stable. For her, it was normal to see foreign faces, always towering over her. No one bothered her much; the ones who did get close to her did so with plain disregard. Her wings always awed or perplexed the humans.

But this man, he wasn’t one of those people. He eyed her differently while walking through. He wore a long coat; his boots stepped silently on the floor. He walked away, but not without eyeing her closely, watching her every move.

She didn’t move much, she always tried to control her vigor. She had disrupted guests before, and she had learnt not to do so. She had learnt to feel shame under their reactions, once she was old enough to notice Ariel’s apprehension. And so, the man deemed her harmless and far too young to take action.

He returned, with a serious look in his face. He paced in the hallway, never heading for its end. His steps halted a little in order to inspect a painting when another guest walked by. Once the other one walked away, he stopped pretending. As he turned to face the door of Alexis’ room, he tried the handle.

The man had less than good intentions. He had roamed the manor for two days already, he knew the layout. Ayako’s office was locked, it was where she kept all her books, weapons and tars; the children were not allowed there yet, knowing they were too curious to ignore a crossbow if they spotted it. Uriel’s room, even if full of expensive objects, was located in the basement, a place guests rarely went to, where he would look too conspicuous. Alexis’ was located in a side wing of the manor, right where guests could roam, but where few did at once.

This door was not locked.

Aurora blinked and stopped looking down, because she heard the click of a handle. When she moved to glance, she spotted the man there, moving a foot to get in, carefully. When she spoke up she surprised him; he whipped his head to give her a wary stare.

“T-that’s not your room.” She held her claws together, shy to speak up. “Please, don’t open.”

She was always told to be kind to their guests, like her sister did. Her tone was soft, but full of concern. She knew that they always got in and out of rooms, ones she could not distinguish apart; but this was Alexis’ room. She felt more confused when the man smiled in a strange way, shaking his head at her. He had not expected her to speak or call him out, but still considered her a clueless child.

“Don’t worry, I have permission.”

With that, he got in without paying her any more mind. She sat there, bewildered, nervous to move.

But she did move. She felt she had to, for many reasons, some which she wouldn’t understand until many years later, when Uriel would explain to her how protective they could be of an angel. Right now, she felt anxious as she stood up to face one of the humans she usually avoided.

“W-wait!” She stumbled as she got to her feet, but quickly hurried forward. “It’s his room!”

The man stopped in the center of the room, seeing her lean onto the door frame while looking up at him worriedly. So he smiled again with his eyes narrowed. He spoke to her while crouching a little, to her eye level, with a tone that one would use to hide dislike.

“Oh, kid, he lets me get in, don’t worry.” He did not know exactly to whom belonged this room, but he knew that it belonged to one of the owners. “He told me to grab something. I’ll just get it, and take it to him.”

She did not believe him. She knew her father only trusted in Uriel, Ayako and Ariel. As soon as the man reached and opened one of the desk’s drawers, she moved. She pulled a little at him, while grabbing his pant leg with her small claw, insisting.

“He wouldn’t say that. No one touches his things!”

She whimpered in surprise, because the man batted a hand near her face, scaring her off. Without looking at her, he kept his attention on the drawer’s contents, which he kept rummaging through.

“Go back and play with your silly owl, will you?” He ignored her, and then snatched a half carved figurine out a drawer, glaring at it with disdain. “There’s nothing here but worthless tools and stupid toys.”

Aurora flinched, because he threw the figurine over his shoulder, making it drop harshly on the ground. It rolled at her feet, allowing her to stare at it with small tears building up in her eyes. No one ever opened those drawers but Alexis, because there he hid what he crafted for Ariel and her. She contained a cry, biting her lip angrily while looking at it; the small half made figurine of a lion, which had a name carved on its mane. Her sister’s name. Her eyes narrowed as she looked up from it, she was angered by the fact that he had broken one of its paws.

Her wings were batting angrily now, slightly open. Her claws were clenched. She scowled and cried in impotence. As much as she wanted to yell at him, she was always told to be nice, to trust in adults. This man was the only adult here; Ayako was out in a hunt, Uriel was arraying barrels of wine in a cellar, and Alexis was outside.

She stood fearfully and unsurely, said nothing, unable to stop the man from going through what the desk contained. He seemed to grow bored of its contents, because he groaned and snarled, moving away from the multiple tools he had taken out. His eyes scanned the room, quickly and carefully. It was obvious he did not want to stay here for long.

He found something of interest, in the shadows, between a crate and a closet, hidden at the left side of the bed.

“Ah, now that’s something.” He walked towards the chest, twirling a lock pick. It was locked, and that made clear it contained valuables. “Yes, I knew there had to be a thing or two in here.”

With a manor as big as this one, some loot had to be found. Adding to that, he had seen the necklace Alexis wore, and was sure that if he had something like that, he had to have more expensive things. He had already pocketed some trinkets that decorated other rooms, but nothing truly worth the effort, nothing worth more than copper coins.

He crouched in front of the chest, and forced it open with a smirk. He grasped the handle of the long sword with one hand, while his eyes fixed on the golden armor hidden at its side. He was too focused to pay her mind. She trembled, seeing him open a chest that her father had been zealous of, never letting her near it. She knew it had to mean that its contents were important to him.

“S-stop, it’s not yours.”

He gave her a look that made her cry more. She felt small and useless; he looked at her with disgust, finally tired of her. He did not stare at her for long; his eyes showed pure disdain, as if he saw her as simple vermin, a critter that would not stop bothering him. It was a look Uriel had received many times.

She saw him lift up the armor, and then begin to try to tie the sword onto his belt, under his coat. And when he tried to leave with them… she stopped trembling.

Not far, Ariel heard a pained yell. Her tail shivered, she dropped the broom she had been holding. She heard what could only be the sounds of a nearby scuffle. She heard growls and huffs that she would recognize anywhere. Though they had another tone, one that was neither playful nor hesitant.

She ran. By the time she reached the location of the scuffle, it was already over. She entered the room early enough to get to see her sister there, teeth and claws clamped around the leg of the man. But she was late enough to prevent said man from shaking Aurora off of him.

Aurora yelped and stumbled backwards; she would have hit and crushed her wings with her own body if not for Ariel, who caught her as she fell. As she propped Aurora up on the floor, Ariel looked up in confusion and wariness, not knowing if to worry for his bleeding leg, or if to bite him as well for the push he gave to her little sister.

Ariel knew she was right to feel anger when she spotted the sword on his belt. Slowly, she moved with Aurora in her hold. Her little sister was now crying and cowering. The man was an adult, and they were only children. She said nothing, but kept staring at the bigger human while she moved away defensively, noting his aggressive and angered stance.

Seeing that the horned child moved away from him, and that she did not confront him in benefit of the younger devil, he lowered his fist. He huffed and glared at the two, noting how they both trembled under his stare. He walked to the door with strong steps, knowing he had to get out of there. He still had the sword, even though he did not manage to get the armor.

He was sure he could manage to sneak out through a window, somewhere, without alerting the owners of the inn. But he was wrong. As soon as he stepped out into the hallway, he was confronted by another obstacle. He did flinch, never having expected to hear another growl, an animalistic one. He looked down in front of him, and saw a lynx. Said critter was leaning onto his front paws; ready for a pounce, waiting, showing his teeth, daring him to take another step. He was right in his way, blocking his path towards his escape.

He had no idea where this animal had come from, but he knew it was pissed off. Its void like black fur was up, his ears were folded back strongly, and its claws were scratching the wooden floor furiously, still but twitching. He had been sure it was a lynx, until he paid more mind to those red eyes.

Sharp, feral, animal like. But with the same sentience a human would show. He understood then, that this animal was not what he seemed. In fact, he became more wary of those eyes, knowing some demons had been twisted by magic and could distort their bodies at will. It was rare, but possible.

Lykaios did not lunge, not even when the man laid a hand on the sword, while looking at him. He remained still, knowing he could cause a panic if he dared change in here. He rarely changed nowadays, only in cold nights, when he would get lost in the forest.

He did not need to stop the man, another one did, unintentionally. Someone had heard the scream, from far away; someone had seen Ariel run and Lykaios creep out from where he hid. An armor walked into the corridor, very slowly and carefully; another that stood right near them trembled, and then stood to block the only free way that the man had. Those violet glows pierced him, intimidating without a need for expression. Those lifeless helmets were enough; the armors were reaching for their spears as well.

Uriel let Lykaios step aside. As he advanced to face the man with one of his puppets, he pointed at the bastard with a spear, signaling to what he carried. While the human obliged and untied the sword, he made another armor enter the room. He escorted the children out; they quickly followed, holding on to the armor while glancing timidly at the scene.

The thief finally laid down Alexis’ sword on the ground, at his feet, hands up while watching their every move. He dared spit out some words, intimidated but defiant.

“Here you go, your silly sword. Knowing what it is, you probably like to sniff it in the nights, to-” He yelped in pain, because the armor stomped on his foot, the one Aurora had not clawed at. “Ah! You damn-!”

Uriel raised a gauntlet, ready to punch him instead of stomping his other foot. He managed to startle the man and shut him up, as soon as he readied the metallic fist slowly. He did not end up striking him; the glow fluttered inside the helmet, for the puppet felt contact. Looking down, he saw Ariel there, yanking gently at its arm, shaking her head with a soft grimace.

“Don’t.”

Uriel scowled, while letting out a deep frustrated growl in a dark cellar. The armor began to lower its fist, helmet bowed with reluctance. The demon could not deny her, not when her eyes were full of awareness and concern. She knew they shouldn’t harm him.

Aurora peeked sadly from behind the second armor, staring at the blood that showed on his leg. She had bitten quite forcefully, and clawed with insistence until he let go of Alexis’ armor.

While all this happened, people had noticed something was up. A small group of guests had walked into the far end of the corridor, whispering and peeking into the scene. Most did not dare near because they saw the armors there; they had carried brooms, but now they held spears. As they commented, someone pushed through between them.

Alexis’ eyes widened, not for the fact that his room was open and invaded, but for seeing who stood by it. He quickly raised Aurora into his arms as she ran to him fearfully. He sighed when she buried herself against his chest, but then he stared with dread at the man. It did not help that Ariel sent them a calm yet anxious look while her sister sobbed silently.

He hugged his daughter, keeping her close and her trembling wings still. He stood with fear in his eyes, as he glared at the limp on the human’s leg. He did not move or let her go, not even when the bastard turned to look at them both, with realization in his eyes.

“This place is just a den, full of devils…” His eyes were fixed on the angel, not in a good way. “You spawned that critter.”

All eyes turned onto him. He fidgeted under their gazes, but refused to walk away. He did not show his inner panic, not even when the gazes of the humans around them filled with doubtful realization. The whispers pointed out how his hair color matched with hers, how her features resembled his. Something that had not seemed plausible before was all too possible now. No one had paid mind to their relation, not when she was so young and all of them referred to each other by their names.

He did wince when someone said the word demon in the back of the crowd. He did not look like one, but it was the only logical explanation to them. They did not care how he could have cut his claws, gotten rid of horns, wings, or tails. If he had looked fairly human like Uriel did, it was possible he had tried to change himself, in a painful manner.

The thief was growing anxious with every moment he stood there, visible to everyone. Even though the tides had changed and the guests were now eyeing the armors and Alexis instead of him, he wanted to get out, as soon as possible. As he dropped some of the other trinkets he had snatched away, he faced the armor, demanding angrily.

“Let me through, I’m leaving.”

Uriel seemed to doubt. In the end, under the worried eyes of Ariel and the wary eyes of the guests around them, he found himself stepping aside. He let him through, moving down the point of his spear. All watched the man begin to limp away angrily, glaring back at them. On his way out, he crossed Lykaios, who yelped in surprise when he tried to kick him.

The lynx assigned himself the task of escorting the bastard out. He did so from afar, eyes fixed on his neck.

The hallway was filled with an eerie silence. Aurora lifted her gaze a little from Alexis’ shoulder. She looked around her, and only saw the defeated glances of her family, and the piercing stares of the humans. The guests were eyeing her, looking at the small red spots on her mouth and nails. That same look was given to Uriel, Ariel, and even Alexis. The guests began to move away slowly, not a single one of them leaving without the company of another human. They headed straight to their rooms, to leave them alone in that corridor, in silence.

Aurora’s mind recalled the times when she had gotten noticed for her claws or wings, now traits that she doubted in. Ariel was looking at her dejectedly, her expression one that showed how much she had wanted to protect her. Both sisters felt isolation and judgment, even when they had tried to evade it.

Alexis and Uriel were immobile, incapable of addressing what had just happened. But even then, the angel tried to soothe Aurora’s increasing anxiety, by whispering to her, closely.

“It’s okay, Aurora.” He closed his eyes, unable to watch while Ariel grasped sadly the hand of the armor. “It’s okay…”

He really hoped it was.