"Your soul smells different."
It's the first thing Bert tells me when I sit across from him and Jepha at the local café. I don't even take a sip from my drink yet, blinking a couple of times as I look at them, both idiots with the same stupid look on their face. I roll my eyes, finally sitting down properly and proceeding to open the straw for my drink.
"Well, good afternoon to you too, Robert Edward McCracken!" I rolled my eyes. That weird ass comment of his.
The café is full today like it usually is during the winter days since everyone is always seeking out a warm drink and the café always widens the menu during the season. The heaters are on and, with the soft talk outside, there's a pleasing atmosphere inside the café. Bert and Jepha thankfully managed to be able to get a booth.
Jeph checks his phone. "Good evening, actually."
"Fuck off," I sigh, sticking the straw past the drink's lid, and take a sip of it. Pleasingly warm. "Anyways, how are you guys doing? It's been a while."
Bert nods, still smiling. "Indeed. Right, we are sort of organizing a gathering. A barbecue or whatever, if you'd like to come over this weekend." He plays lightly with the straw of his drink, spinning it around, while Jepha is on his phone.
"Oh, sounds good, I'll just—" I pause at the moment Jepha turns his phone towards me, making me laugh at a picture of Bert and Quinn passed out on the street while, in the trashcan on the back, a couple of eyes peeked from the half open lid and I scoffed recognizing Dan. "...What? What's the context?"
Bert furrows his eyebrows and takes Jepha's wrist to hold the phone to himself. "For fuck's sake, Jepharee!" Jepha just breaks into chuckles, and I can't help but do the same despite how Bert scoffs, rolling his eyes. "Whatever, what were you saying, (y/n)?"
"Ah, right!" I nod. "I am going to check with the others if there's any problem if I go. Not that they own me or something, but..."
After all, it'd just been a few days since I've been allowed to leave home alone. Turns out turning into a creature like this and being connected to the darkness grants me a great consciousness that I was not really ready for. It's not easy being conscious of others' existence. Noticing everything all at the same time around me. It takes a while to get used to it until it's just something else in the back of your mind until you really need it.
It is also too noisy. Too many things going on. I can feel things going on all around me, which sometimes makes me want to interfere out of reflex, sometimes. It has me going out of control at times and causing a mess, which required me quite a while in the mansion during most of the winter break.
"Does it have to do with how your soul smells different?" Jepha glances up from his phone, probably already saying whatever Bert was going to say since he just nods, and points at Jeph.
I blink. My soul smells different. What kind of stuff is that? How can angels even smell souls? The most I can do is feel the vibration of someone's soul—which sometimes allows me to identify people just through it, like I do with Frank. It's so easy to sense whenever he is near, but also shamefully easy slipping into his soul when we're cuddling or sometimes slipping into his dreams when we're asleep. It's an... interesting experience, to say the least.
"You can smell souls...?" I scoff.
Bert looks to the side for a moment, then shrugs. "Actually not, but saying it smells different is better than saying it tastes different, right?"
I need to look away from them to stop the chuckle from coming out, shaking my head a little. "What kind of mentally ill are you?" I end up chuckling once they do, soon sighing as I calm down and take a sip from my drink. "But yeah, kind of has to do with it." I lean back against the backrest of the booth. I take a deep breath, trying to feel the vibrations of their souls—it's different from the four's, but I'm not sure if theirs vibrate similarly due to them being demons or the fact they're always together.
The conversation eventually slips into something else, and they don't really mention the fact that my soul smells different or whatever they mean by that. It's mostly us sharing what's happened during the time we were away and joking around as usual. Bert also texts me more about their 'barbecue-gathering-potluck-whatever' before we part ways with hugs.
A sigh escapes my lips as I finally start heading home. Home, as in the mansion. I do miss living with mom, yeah, but living in the mansion seems more suitable, at least for the time being.
Once I open the door to the mansion, I am greeted by a sword thrown onto the wall, just inches away from my head. I blink a couple of times and follow the direction where it came from, seeing Ray and Mikey standing there with wide eyes. They share a look then start grinning, awkwardly.
"Um... Welcome back, (y/n)," Mikey greets me with a chuckle, scratching the back of his head and with a hand on his hip.
"Where did the sword come from?"
Ray took a deep breath and looked away, humming. "Long story, actually."
I look from them to the sword, observing it has a silver handle with a red stone embedded into it. "Okay... Either way, I brought coffee! All of them are from the Christmas edition!" I say loud enough for the others to hear in case they are nearby as I walk to the kitchen and it's no new that I immediately hear commotion. Ray quickly slips into the kitchen before Gerard and Frank walk in breathing heavily, looking around before they stumble towards the coffee while also trying to push each other out of the way.
Frank gets his coffee, humming happily as he sips on it, and I bite back a smile.
"And that's it on loving coffee more than loving your own partner." I roll my eyes with a sigh.
There are a few seconds until Frank widens his eyes and his eyes shoot towards me at the same moment. "Nooo!" He pouts and puts his coffee away before he quickly rushes over to hug me, peppering kisses all over my cheek—I try to lean away with a groan, but he also leans over, continuing to do it despite how I even press a hand over his chest. "No, c'mon," he groans at my attempts to turn away. "Baby," Frank mumbles repeatedly until he manages to make me face him, promptly pressing kisses all over my face until the last one is right over my lips.
As I kiss Frank, I try to do something that they taught me a while ago. If I focus just enough...
Frank gasps as he slips past me and falls over the counter behind me. I can't help but let out happy chuckles, jumping a little as I hear the others gasp.
"That's my worstie," Gerard mumbles as he sips on his coffee, making me chuckle a little more.
"You really are getting better, (y/n)," Ray mutters as Mikey hums in agreement, earning both of them a grin from me.
A big, exaggerated frown is over Frank's face as he turns around to face me, but it's clear he is hiding a smile.
"Don't make that ugly face at me!" I laugh, shaking my head. "You preferred your coffee over me!"
"It is fresh coffee!" He sighs as he tries to reach for my hand, but his hand still goes straight past it, making my hand undo itself in a small cloud of black dust before it reconstructs itself—as weird as it looks, I don't even feel anything. He furrows his eyebrows. "Please?"
"Go finish your coffee." I roll my eyes as I take off my coat, already feeling too warm, then move to go upstairs, ignoring the whiny Frank that I leave behind.
It is not long later that I am back to the living room, followed by Frank. He seems a little too giddy and I can feel his hand going through my body a couple of times as he tries to touch me again, with no avail.
"(Y/n)," Frank groans again, following me as I sit down on the couch. "Please..."
I look at Frank for a moment longer, then stretch my hand out to him. He seems hopeful until his hand goes straight past mine. He looks like he will fucking throw a tantrum in an moment, groaning as he aggressively tries to take a hold of it until he finally does. Frank gasps and brings it closer, pressing kisses all over the back of my hand.
"Frank..." I scoff with a chuckle and pull him closer so he can sit down next to me. I sigh as I lean onto him, allowing him to throw an arm around me.
~
A sigh escapes my lips as I sit on the bed. The soft sound of the running shower fills in the background as I observe my own hand, turning it over again and again. I lower it in the shadow cast by myself since I sit with my back to the bedside lamp. My hand gradually disappears as it merges with the shadow until there is nothing, only black dust where my arm disappears into shadows. It's a little difficult to control it all the time, but it's still nice.
A proud grin stretches across my lips. Maybe it's not that bad being a shadow spirit with powers of the Shadow Isles of hell. Not exactly a demon, but I still can harvest souls, firm pacts or deals, and all that stuff.
☾═°∴,*⋅✲═〖✞〗═✲⋅*,∴°═☽
* not proofread