Az was writing at the large, elegantly-carved wooden desk situated next to the tent-like area Evelyn was sleeping in when he heard a ripping sound—familiar, annoying and most of all unnecessary; he hadn't heard this one in over ten years and she certainly was well aware of how to do it silently by now.

With a familiar twitch of his wrist, he snapped up a barrier and blocked the expected slicing attack without looking up and continuing to write with his left hand. The papers on his desk did not stir as it was deflected and dissipated out on the marble floor, avoiding the tented area entirely. He was pleased, he hadn’t practiced using Threads in a while. There hadn’t been a particular need to, although if he intended to try for a Grand Supreme title, he would need to resume regular exercises.

A second attack came, more powerful than the first. This one required his attention to block, and managed to ruffle his papers slightly, but he was still able to prevent it from disturbing the curtains surrounding Evelyn.

Az glared up at the void opening in front of his desk—where the attack had come from—and the female demon stepping through it. Rather than greeting her, he turned back to his writing and tried to keep his growing irritation from showing on his face. It would only encourage her to be even more annoying.

“I see you have finally solved my wards,” he stated calmly without looking back up. Through the corner of his eyes, he watched as she dusted her loosely worn black suit off. The void behind her closed—silently, confirming Az’s earlier suspicions. She held a bundle of Threads in one hand, grinning as she obviously debated throwing another attack. Az resisted the urge to sigh heavily as he set down his pen and prepared for another test.

Seeming pleased to have gotten his attention, the other demon dropped the aggressive stance and yawned, stretching. Her diamond-pointed tail snapped behind her. “Didn't even try till just now, actually. Probably wouldn't have stopped me back then, either, but we both know that. No need to rub it in, right? You still can’t kick my ass.”

“What do you want, C?” he asked, dropping his eyes to trace over the books on his desk, and trying his hardest to ignore her as much as he possibly could. Unfortunately, she had come just as he was finishing up one project, and starting another while also ignoring her would be a very difficult task.

The demon C was about the same height as he was, with larger but similarly shaped tall horns and pure black skin. Her tail came to a sharp triangular point, and unlike the constant twitching of his own, moved in smooth, undulating waves. She was dressed in a suit vaguely like his—hers was certainly not designer and was probably overdue for a replacement. Her vest was unbuttoned and her shirt only mostly buttoned, and her long tie hung loosely over it.

She didn't answer his question, instead snapping her fingers. A long pipe fell into her hand, and she pulled on it briefly. Purple smoke lazily puffed from her mouth. “Lovely to see you too, A, by the by. Been a hot minute, hasn't it? Or more like... I dunno, ten fuckin' years now?”

“Five and three quarters. You witnessed my match for Supreme against... whatever his name was.” Az frowned at his penmanship, which had become a bit messy since his old teacher had showed up. There was a small ink blot; he would have to redo the last page.

C scoffed, rolling her violet eyes. “Like that shit counts. You barely said hi to your brothers, even though they came to cheer you on.”

She gave him a sideways look as she pulled on her pipe again. “Broke B’s little heart, y’know. Didn’t get why his big brother won’t hang out with him.”

As usual, she was probing for a weak spot. Az would not show her one. He clenched his jaw tighter, hoping it was imperceptible. He answered her calmly.

“His attachment is merely copying D’s. We are not blood related, nor have we spent any particular amount of time together without D present.” He set his pen down and turned the page on one of the several books open on his large desk before grabbing a fresh sheet of paper. He’d rewrite the last page after C left. He should at least be able to write the note to accompany the freshly translated volume without as much trouble.

C rolled her eyes again as she inhaled her pipe and sauntered over towards his desk, only casting a brief gaze towards the tent. He noticed.

I did not anticipate her visit, but it is clear why it is occurring.

C swept off a small area on his desk with one arm, jumping to sit up on it rudely as the papers fell to the floor. She crossed one long leg over the other, and leaned forward on one arm, poking his face with a long claw from the other in a casual way that would have cost any lesser demon their entire limb. Closing his eyes briefly, Az resisted the urge to pick a fight he could not yet win.

“I heard that you got a pet.” Both words were emphasized with a jab, as if underscoring how incredulous she was at such an action from him, specifically.

“Yes,” he said without elaborating, ignoring her and beginning to draft the note. He made a stronger effort to keep his writing quick, but neat, as he could feel C watching him with sharp eyes that did not match her casual demeanor.

How did she find out? Is she still watching me, even after all these years? I did not consider her as a factor while I was planning. That is a failure on my part.

“I can see you're oh-so-busy, so you won't mind if I go peeking at her on my own, right?” C said with a tone that said she absolutely knew he would mind, and that perhaps that was the point. She hopped off the desk and turned towards the white curtains.

Az looked up. He let out an irritated sigh and cleared his throat, which made her pause and look back at him with a grin, quite pleased to have gotten a reaction.

“She is sleeping. The journey from Above can be difficult on humans, as you are certainly aware.” He resumed writing. “Please leave her be.”

“Sure, if you tell me about her.” C snapped her fingers, and he suppressed a wince at the sound of the armchair from beside the pillowed area scratching over in front of his desk. She deposited herself in it and leaned forward, setting her elbows on the arms and weaving her long, pointed black fingers together to rest her equally black and pointy chin on them as she grinned. “First off. Why?”

Az closed his eyes and set his pen aside, giving up on working. He met her eyes levelly. “Is that any of your concern?”

“Won't know until you tell me,” she replied casually. Even as she continued to grin at him, there was a slight edge in her voice that matched the sharp glint in her eye. Az immediately discerned the true reason for her visit and answered carefully.

“I was curious.” It was mostly the truth, although he doubted she'd believe him. He watched her carefully, trying to gauge her reaction. C was nothing if not unpredictable, hypocritical, and unnecessarily nosy. She would dig at him until she decided on an answer that satisfied her, regardless of whether it was what he had said or not.

“Curious, wow, what a great reason to kidnap a human being, which, you'll recall, is generally frowned upon by the rest of society, both Above and Below. Probably not so much Between though, they don't give a fuck about anything.” As usual, C’s sarcasm was obvious. She leaned back, flexing a finger into a claw and examining it in a bored fashion. “And I suppose it was your special bonding time Above with your dearest little brother D that inspired this?”

He didn't respond, but she was used to him refusing to answer her, and so continued as if thinking out loud at him. “You’re not the type to try to be hip with the kids, so I’m sure it wasn’t just copying D… Something else piqued your interest.”

He kept his face blank as he watched her. She spoke confidently even as she gave him a sly side eye. “I wonder what it could have been, hmm?”

She blew out a purple O ring of smoke that politely avoided Az entirely. “I'll take a guess. Holly.”

He knew that would be her prediction, but still couldn't prevent a small muscle in his jaw from twitching as she nailed it.

“So Holly interested you?” Although it was clear that was the answer she had predicted, C actually looked surprised, a truly rare occurrence. She raised a brow. “She's a little sweetheart, for sure, but why the hell would you find that interesting?”

I have not missed these interactions one bit.

Az folded his hands on the desk as he gazed impassively at C, wondering if he could detour the conversation into an area he could more easily control. The last thing he wanted to discuss with C was his feelings towards D's delicate partner; she would gleefully misinterpret them into a childish crush or vulgar attraction rather than the unexpected, protective fondness that was much more akin to his feelings towards his brothers. “Simply because it does not make sense.”

The previous tension had dulled. She’d already settled into a familiar posture, that of his erstwhile teacher. She waved her hand out as her other hand brought the pipe back to her mouth. “Explain it to me. What doesn't make sense?”

Reluctantly, he answered with a partial truth. “Holly is clearly weak, without any particular skills of her own, and is unable to even provide blood for him whenever necessary. And yet, D seems to find great value in her.“

That phrase was not nearly strong enough. His brother had risked his life repeatedly for the ghost-like young woman, and seemed to constantly need to touch her. In return, Holly’s open affection and eagerness to make D smile had given Az a calm feeling in his heart. His brother was happy, and happy in a way Az couldn’t have predicted. He was now an adult in love, and in love with someone that truly deserved him. That was the greatest success Az could ever have hoped for.

C would never understand.

“And you can’t understand why.” C blew out smoke with another expectantly raised brow.

The conversation had become almost nostalgic. Az remembered wandering in the endless strange rooms Below, his smaller body unable to keep stride with C’s much longer legs, but she never slowed down. Back then, nearly all their conversations went in a similar fashion, C would ask questions, and he would answer them. The back and forth slowly helped him to form his own conclusions, and a greater understanding of the world around him. It was something he felt gratitude for, but that did not overrule his irritation at her smug insistence that she understood him better than he understood himself.

Still, the exhaustion from his journey Above—and using three bloodstones, although he would certainly never tell C that—made it hard to think of believable lies. He tried anyways, hoping that another partial truth would provide further cover. “I understand why. It became obvious that they have created a supportive partnership together in a way that somehow negates her many objective weaknesses. My curiosity is how a powerless human can be made useful—”

Despite anticipating it, he immediately regretted being honest at all as C interrupted him with a whooping laugh. “Oh my god, you've gotta be fuckin' kidding me, A. You want a girlfriend?”