Chapter Text
Every new beginning comes from some other beginnings end.
~
Hot breath billowed down Lute's chest, goosebumps rippling in its wake along her skin. She hissed as Adam's talons raked across her ass.
“S-Sorry, ‘Tits,” Adam huffed breathlessly into her neck. “Fuckin... claws.”
Finding her rhythm again, she focused on the electric sensations coursing up her back as she rode him.
The day she'd found Adam again had been the greatest day of her life—and the worst. Hell had changed him, cursed him, and made him into a mockery of his old self. Deep black fur covered his whole body. Bright, pupilless eyes sat in place of his own, and rough, ridged horns grew from his head, a twisted likeness of his old helmet.
When she'd seen him... She hadn’t run to embrace him. Hadn't immediately told him what she thought she'd never get to say since losing him and hadn't taken her place at his side again, where she was always meant to be.
She'd... damn it, she'd went for her sword. Drawing it and threatening to gut the creature who dared parade his likeness around for its own sick amusement. And then...
Then she'd seen it. The way his face fell, how his shoulders sagged, the first bead of a tear he quickly turned away to hide, and to her horror, she'd realized it was him. Every day since then, she'd tried to make up for it. It was... different, that was certain, but, it was him, he was back. She would take the bad with the good.
Staying at the Hotel had almost been too much, though. They kept to themselves most of the time. Adam was under some agreement with the brat that he would at least attend her little group therapy sessions, but they'd apparently made no such deal for her. That was fine. She didn't want to see the others, and didn't want to be seen here. She was only here for Adam, and unfortunately, this was where Adam was safest. Even with her defending him, she was only one angel, and thanks to them, angelic steel was not so difficult to acquire here.
So she stayed secluded in their room, bored nearly out of her mind. She kept herself sane with workouts and what training she could manage in its small confines, eating the meals that Adam retrieved for them, and... well, this would never get old.
Their breath quickened together, Lute running her fingers through the mane of fur that cascaded down his neck. She hummed, feeling his teeth grazing along her skin. He was close; she'd learned how to spot it a long time ago, and his tells hadn't changed, despite the rest of him.
She was too, but tried to draw it out as long as she could. When they were together like this, things were almost normal. Almost like they used to be. Almost.
Adam groaned, grip on her hips tightening as he pressed her down to the base. Warmth began to bloom in her hips, her toes curling at the sensation. It pushed her past her own mountaintop, her body shuddering as she sighed against his cheek. They panted, so close that their own hearts hammered together as if they were one.
If.
They could never truly be one. She was not capable of such... bonding. She was an angel of death. Her purpose was to take life, and she was good at it. She always took pride in her abilities, and strived to be the best at what she was made to be. That was why Adam had noticed her. That was why she was by his side, why they were this. But... there was no need for a creature such as her to make life, and so she couldn't. Never would she hold the sum of their love in her arms. She had accepted this long ago, but that didn't mean it didn't hurt to think about. He probably didn't want them anyway, he'd never had much praise to lay at the idea of being a father.
“You okay, Lute? I didn't hurt you did I?” Adam murmured into her neck, bringing her back out of her mind.
“You can't hurt me, Adam,” she replied softly, curling her fingers through his mane.
He made a small noncommittal sound, felt more than heard against her skin. They stayed pressed close together for a while before Adam slowly sunk low, pulling them down against the mattress together. He pulled the sheets up, covering them both up to the chest.
As she watched him, she could see there was something he was thinking about. Something he wanted to say but didn't know how to say it. He'd always known he was easy to read, it's why he preferred the mask. Was it the same thing she was thinking? He opened his mouth, and she waited for him to speak... but, he didn’t. He snapped his mouth shut, perhaps hoping the darkness they lay in hid that he had even opened it at all. So, she leaned her head in, pressing it to his chest, and he laid his chin on her head, both slowly drifting off to sleep. Another aimless day in Hell notched in their belt.
~
Lute shook her protein shake, peering out the window at Pentagram City below. It was the same as it always was, constant in its affront to all that was good and virtuous. Even from up here, if you listened close enough, you could hear the screams, violence, and debauchery that carried on at all hours of the day and night, unending. It was a city that never slept, and each time she gazed down at it, she wished she was much higher above, descending on it with a sword in hand. Nothing down here deserved to live, and those that did were lucky Heaven allowed them to.
Having shaken her breakfast long enough, she let the blinds snap back together, raising the mouth of the cup to her lips. She'd convinced Adam to try one once. He'd made a face before he spat it into the nearest bush.
‘Uh, that ain't chocolate, babe. That's chalk-colate. Dunno how you drink that shit every day.’
She had rolled her eyes and finished it off. It was simple, it tasted fine, and she couldn't imagine ever wanting anything else to start the day.
The rancid taste that washed over her tongue caused her to gag, nearly spewing it all over the room. Rushing to the bathroom, she spat it out in the sink, eyeing the mixer cup dubiously.
‘The fuck?’ she silently mouthed, peering through the opening at the liquid within. Nothing looked off, nothing smelled– urk! she retched, hand flying to her mouth. Luckily, nothing followed. Her brow furrowed. Had someone done something to her protein powder? How could they have? It stayed in her room, and she was always here. Surely she hadn't missed them sneaking in at night? Washing what remained of the taste of her mouth with some water, she walked back into their bedroom.
Adam snored quietly on their bed, sprawled across it like he'd landed there from orbit.
“Sir,” she called, rounding their bed and nudging one of his horns. The texture was still unpleasant, but she'd gotten used to it. A small noise welled from the sheets bunched up around his face.
“Sir, wake up.” She gave his shoulder a firm shake, “Taste this.”
Adam's ear, pointed and fuzzy and utterly unnatural, perked up, and the mass of black fur that he was began to stir. One golden eye peeked out from under the nest of sheets, before he groaned, pressing his face back into them.
“Come on babe, I told ya already I hate that stuff.” He grumbled, muffled by the bed.
“I think someone did something to my powder, it tastes awful.” She shook it for effect, “Taste it, tell me what you think.”
“You're really not selling me on this, Lute.” he replied.
“Adam!” She hissed, in a way they both knew held no venom.
He sighed, rolling over and scooting back up against the headboard. He dwarfed it, just like everything else in this room, including her, but that was fine. If there was one good thing to be gleaned from his new form, it was that he'd gotten even bigger than before.
She thrust the drink forward insistently. Adam eyed her with suspicion for a moment, with a look that seemed like he expected this to be some kind of joke. When she didn't smile or pull it back he reached out and took it, giving it an experimental sniff.
No retching or gagging. He turned the cup up and took two large gulps, much more than she expected, before wiping his mouth and looking back to her.
“Um... yeah, it still tastes like chalk. Just like last time.”
Lute scowled, snatching it back. Even the wafting smell of it was enough to make her gag.
“Shit, you alright babe?” Adam's tone turned concerned, reaching out for her.
Lute frowned, turning away to go dump it out in the sink. Either one of those cretins downstairs had messed with the powder, or... something! Something was going on and she didn't like it, she just had to figure out what. Her stomach rumbled, and suddenly she realized just how hungry she felt. This didn't just feel like being a few minutes off schedule, all of a sudden she felt positively ravenous.
“Lute?” Adam's voice snapped her back to the present. She turned to see him stooping in the door frame, concern still etched across his face.
“I'm fine,” she quickly assured, “just... hungry?” It felt strange to even say. She had a very regimented day, even in Hell. Biting hunger like she felt now was entirely unfamiliar to her.
“Oh... Well, I was gonna go down for breakfast leftovers anyway, want me to grab you something?”
“I'll come with you,” she said without really thinking, leaving Adam looking as stunned as she felt
“Are you sure you're okay, babe?” He asked, cocking his brow.
“No?” She replied honestly.
~
The elevator ride down to the lobby felt as if she were descending into Hell.
Well, further descending that was. She watched as the floors ticked by, crossing her arms a little tighter across her chest. The hand finally fell all the way, striking L on the plate, and with a cliche little chime, the doors slid open.
No one was waiting outside. Adam craned his head out, checking left to right before patting her on the shoulder.
“Coast is clear, they're all probably in the middle of a cry-sesh or something, c'mon.” He ducked out and made for the kitchen, Lute following quickly after.
She cut her eyes back and forth, searching for any sign of the others as they walked. If one of them really was trying to provoke her, she hoped they would come staggering around a corner snickering. It would be all the easier to beat them to a pulp if they identified themselves.
They slipped into the kitchen, Adam immediately yanking open the fridge door and setting out anything wrapped in foil. Lute eyed everything he set out, but, before she could start to think of what she might want, she caught a different scent. She peered into the fridge, spotting a greasy paper bag shoved toward the back.
She pulled it out, unrolling it and dumping the contents onto the counter. Wrapped in paper so greasy it was translucent, was some kind of burger and a handful of fries. It should have made her stomach turn, it should have been something that only Adam would eat while she rolled her eyes, but... right now, it was suddenly the only thing she knew could sate her hunger.
As soon as it was out of the wrapper she tore into it, not bothered in the slightest that it was cold. The mixture of salt and grease and sugar and... oh fuck, it was delicious. Why hadn't she ever eaten one of these before? She tore off another bite, and another, before pausing to lick some ketchup that had oozed out off her fingertips.
“Alright, now I know something's up.”
She suddenly remembered she wasn't alone, turning her eyes sheepishly up to Adam.
“You wouldn't eat a burger if your afterlife depended on it in Heaven, now you're scarfing one from Hell down like it's your last meal.” He squinted, leaning on his fist. “What's going on, ‘Tits?”
She felt herself flush with embarrassment, utterly at a loss for what was driving this behavior. It felt... gluttonous, and for her to enjoy it so much surely wasn't a good sign, but... fuck, it was so good. What was going on?
All of a sudden the kitchen door swung open, the one they called Angel Dust standing stunned in the doorway. For a moment they stared between each other silently, before Adam cleared his throat.
“Uhh, sup, Spiderslut.” He motioned a small wave with a handful of pancakes.
“ ...Is that my burger?” Angel said incredulously, staring at Lute.
She looked at him, then Adam, then the burger, then back to him... and took another bite.
“No?” She said through the mouthful.