"You know Arzhel, you look a little taller," Micah said, inspecting him with eyes like precious amber stones, fused inside delicate jewellery.
"Yes, only a bit. I am still small compared to Zyaire." Arzhel smiled, feeling the warmth of the demon's chest press against him. The angel looked up, meeting the gaze of his soulmate, familiar to him like his own reflection.
"Small is an understatement," Zyaire said, leaning down to kiss his hair, finding any excuse to smell his scent of diluted wildflowers. "Anyway, what
happened with the Gods? Is it always like that here?"
Micah couldn't hide a smile. Zyaire had once been so cruel to Arzhel , disturbed to connect a bond with an angel. Now, they displayed their love with pride and happiness.
"That was the first time the Gods all met at once, actually. You witnessed something extraordinary."
"I wouldn't call that special. Liam almost turned into overdone wolf meat."
"Clearly you missed the part where he threw the fire God into the woods?"
A deep growl shivered Zyaire's ear. He turned to scowl at Zayn. His glare was almost as evil as Em's, wild and built on layers and years of uncontrolled anger.
"Does nobody know how to tame dogs in this world?" Zyaire's tone was as flat as his expressions. Though, he removed himself from the situation by pulling his angel down the corridor.
Zayn looked tired and still in shock from meeting his grandmother, the last thing Zyaire wanted was to pick the werewolf apart when he was mentally weakened. He much preferred to argue with those who could take his attitude.
"If you are not careful, you will get us kicked out of this world" Arzhel sighed, looking around the modern house.
After years of living in an ancient mansion, it felt odd and strange that anyone could call it home. There were no warm colours, only white walls with cream skirting boards. The floor was dark mahogany, accompanied by a cream rug near the front door. An odd metal statue clung to the wall opposite, and a long mirror gave the impression that the hall looked wider. The angel wasn't tall enough to see himself in it, but he caught Zyaire looking down at him, narrowing his eyes.
"I don't know if I like this world anyway. It's boring," Zyaire said. "And we can't explore."
"Maybe not outside, but we can look around their home."
"For an angel, you're pretty bright." Arzhel pulled his shoulder down and smacked him lightly on the side of his head. "I don't have to be bright to knock some sense into you."
Zyaire chuckled, letting the rare sight of joy flood his eyes.
"I'm joking, obviously." Then it was gone in a blink, returning to his usual blank face, mimicking a statue that had been eroded over the years.
"Aren't werewolves really territorial? Niall said something about that. Should we be careful?"
"Maybe," Arzhel said with a thoughtful stare as they made their way to the second floor and stopped outside the first door on the right. The angel reached for the handle but was startled by a voice.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you." The men turned to see another guy leaning against the wall, standing on one leg and twiddling a walking stick in between his hands.
"That's Zayn and Liam's room. Zayn will kill you if you fill it with your scent."
"Try to kill me," Zyaire whispered under his breath.
Arzhel was quickly distracted by the man's cane and had a lot of questions.
"What happened to your leg?" he blurted, then blinked, seeming surprised by his own frankness. "Sorry, that was quite insensitive."
