Archive of Our Own

Waking in the den below the Ministry was never particularly pleasant given their infernal nature. However, most of the Ghouls had grown used to it over the years of being housed there. Stone walls radiating a chill that none of them could shake. Worse so during the damper months of the year. Winter thaw seemed to be its own brand of torture when the water seemed to seep through the cracks in the walls; leaving clothes and the like impossibly damp and musty. No matter the attempts to clean the fabrics or keep them dry. 

It’s own particular Hell on delicate noses. 

Dew wakes particularly irritated for seemingly no reason. Finding himself at the bottom of what had been a well-mannered turned utterly chaotic pile hardly helped his current annoyance. Little care was spared for who he woke in the process of extracting himself from the knot of limbs that sought to keep him trapped. Sweat clung to his skin and matted his hair to his neck and face. Piles had been far more enjoyable before the water within him had dried up and given way to Hellfire. Now he found himself straying further from the behavior as summer drew closer. Despite the nip in the air around him, he felt as though steam were wafting from his limbs. 

A shiver runs through the pile with the loss of their resident fire Ghoul, those still deep asleep shift closer together and tangle themselves into an even tighter knot. The absence rouses a few of the elders of the Ghouls. Mountain picks up his head to arch a brow at Aether who only waves him off as he pulls himself from the mess. The earth Ghoul doesn’t move to follow despite the curiosity that blooms in his chest. Fingers settle into the newest Ghoulette’s hair as she whines, earning himself a low purr as she settles back to sleep. If only they could all sleep as the Ghoulettes seem to manage. Aurora and Phantom being the youngest of them left it no surprise when Phantom shot up at the sudden shift in the air. A low rumbling noise leaves Rain, somewhere to his left, and Moutain swallows a laugh as the water Ghoul’s tail curls around Phantom's middle to tug him back down into the pile. 

A grunt sounds from Swiss as the younger Ghoul lands against him. “M’awake. What’s goin’ on?” 

“Nothing. Shush.” He supposes that Rain was attempting to chide his mate, however, the sleep that clung to his voice made him sound far less harsh. 

“Somethings off…” Phantom mumbles attempting to get comfortable once more. 

“Dew and Aether are up,” Mountain offers in hopes of some explanation. The other three hum in understanding before silence falls over them once more. There was no sleep to be had for the eldest of the pile. Eyes trained on the door that the other two had slipped out of.

Something was definitely off. 

── ⋅ ⋅ ── ⛧ ── ⋅ ⋅ ──

In any other situation, Aether might have been more distracted by the way the water slid along Dew’s skin. However, there was no need for his infernal gift to sense the unrest in the smaller Ghoul. Another day the bathroom would be filled with steam, yet this morning the damp chill rivaled the one that clung to the halls. And the blue hue that had once naturally colored the other’s flesh was a telltale sign that Dew had spent more than enough time under the spray. 

“Come on, love. You can’t stay in there forever.” 

“I can.” 

Ever the petulant brat. Aether had only been mildly surprised when it had gotten worse as Dew’s element had shifted. He supposes the other had earned a bit of the attitude he sported after everything that he’d been through. Though that didn’t mean that he enjoyed it when it was turned in his direction outside a ritual. 

“Don’t make me go get Swiss,” he hums out. A smirk formed on his lips at the annoyed flick of Dew’s tail before he slams his hand against the knob of the shower effectively silencing the spray. Aether is prepared for the other’s fury, though the look on his face is completely negated by the way his hair hangs in a drenched curtain around his horns. Looking much like one of Copia’s rats had someone tried to drown it. 

“Don’t you laugh at me. I’ll rip your throat out.” 

A purred hum leaves him as he smooths the towel over Dew’s face. “Someone’s moody this morning.” 

“Waking up under all of your heavy asses will do that,” he grunts. Fingers twist into the front of Aether’s shirt and tug him down the few inches between them so that he can run his nose along the taller’s cheek. Something within him settles almost instantly as he scents the taller Ghoul. Had he not been so determined to shower he’d have likely taken the ten minutes that it would have cost him to do the same to everyone else. They had nothing to do for the rest of the day, which easily made up Dew’s mind on how he would spend it. Perhaps it was just the disruption of having new additions to the pack that had him so agitated. He’d never done well with change. 

“The imps aren’t used to the cold yet, give them a break.” Aether chides lightly as he returns the favor of scenting the smaller Ghoul in return. 

“Hm. I’ll remember that when I wake up with Swiss crushing me again.” 

A sigh leaves him as Dew breaks away and heads into the room likely in search of clean clothes. A brow arching as he watches the other slip a shirt that very much didn’t belong to him over his head. There’s no excuse thrown his way, just a single finger before Dew was on the move once again. If he didn’t know better Aether would have said that his mate was the youngest of all of them. 

Impulsivity was one of Dew’s more undeniable traits. Which is, of course, what leads him to single out Phantom the moment that he’s among the others. The younger Ghoul gives up a startled chirp as the elder approaches spurring Rain into an almost defensive position. It wouldn’t be the first time things had come to blows without warning. Yet, this time there is only the slide of Dew’s nose along the curve of Phantom’s jaw until it’s pressed into the crook of his throat. There’s an understandable moment of hesitation from the younger before he’s burying his nose into the flesh behind Dew’s ear. It doesn’t take long for the purring to start. 

Once Dew was satisfied and the anxious feeling in his chest has stilled even more, he makes his rounds through those that were awake. The Ghoulettes were always more than happy to scent and cuddle, he knew that there would be no issue there. He settles curled around Rain as the others shower and do whatever they needed to do. Outside of Aether, he found the most comfort in the water Ghoul. Perhaps it was the previously shared element. Perhaps now it was possessing the opposing element. Dew didn’t really care. The tightness in his chest had all but completely dissipated the moment that his nose was filled with the other’s scent. Saltwater and moss. There was no denying that the two Ghouls considered each other secondary mates. 

Rain tips back against the sofa once the room is cleared of all but the sleeping Ghoulettes. A brow arching at the Ghoul in his lap. 

“What is going on with you?” 

A shrug pulls through one shoulder as Dew works his fingers through damp hair to remove the knots. “Woke up hot and sweaty. Annoyed like no other for no reason.” 

“Because you were hot and sweaty or… separately?” 

“Both? I don’t know. I was annoyed that I was sweaty and being hot never helps. But there was like… this anxious feeling that wouldn’t budge until I’d scented everyone. It’s still kind of there, but I think it’s because those three are still asleep.” 

“I really thought you were going to go at Phantom.” 

A half-hearted snort leaves him. “I don’t have a problem with the imp. He should know that I’d be a lot worse if I did.” 

Rain rolls his eyes at the cheeky flash of fangs, gently flicking Dew’s nose. “Maybe you should start showing it.” 

“Where’s the fun in that?” 

“You’re the worst.”

There’s little time to argue that he was hardly the worst as the Ghoulettes begin to stir and stretch in the communal nest. Cumulus is the first to perk up at the sight before them, a wide grin tugging at her lips. 

“Are we being blessed with Dew cuddles!” 

“Not if you’re going to be that excited about it…” 

Rain doesn’t give him the chance to be cruel to them, while the elder is distracted a swift shove sees him landing in their laps. A wicked smirk plays on his lips as he pushes himself up and makes to leave the room. 

“Make sure you don’t leave any part unscented,” he hums before leaving.

It’s much less of a cuddle after Rain leaves. The Ghoulettes were very thorough with their scenting; leaving Dew sore, bitten, bruised, and in much need of another shower. But the strange anxiety that had dwelled in his chest was gone after. 

── ⋅ ⋅ ── ⛧ ── ⋅ ⋅ ──

For three days the cycle repeats. Dew wakes up under the others drenched in sweat and as hot as the Hellscape they’d all come from. The effectiveness of scenting and fucking the anxiety away lessens with each day. Until he doesn’t need to possess Aether and Phantom’s ability to tell that the others are annoyed with him. Dew was annoyed with himself, if he was being honest. Though he can tell that he isn’t the only one feeling the anxiety now. They weren’t due for a heat to tear through the den for weeks yet and none of them were so new to this plane that they would feel it this early. 

There had to be something else. 

Donning his uniform and mask, he skulks around the Ministry attempting to locate the source of the unease plaguing them. It wasn’t as though some black magic ritual would affect them this way. They were all born of it. Unless there was a spy among them, Dew couldn’t logic out what else would have them all so on edge. Even if it were a spy they would have to possess a great power to cause this sort of anxiety. Enough power that he was sure Nihil would have picked up on it the moment they walked through the Ministry doors. 

Returning to the den after a long search, he comes up with no answers. Outside the Twins following him around and requesting to play; absolutely nothing was out of the ordinary. Every Sibling was accounted for and none of them were any different than any other time that he had interacted with them. Sister Imperator was as terrifying as usual. Nihil had never been as intimidating as he’d have liked to have been. And Copia was — well Copia. Though Dew was unsure if he would ever get the image of the Papa riding a child’s tricycle out of his head.  

That night he decides to sleep in his own room. It was unlikely that he would get more than a few hours, however, he is entirely fed up with waking up in a puddle of his own sweat. The others voice various complaints purely based on the fact that he was their source of heat through the night. But they would just have to suffer. Dew was too wound up and unable to rid himself of the feeling in his chest to cater to their needs. Perhaps that made him a bad packmate. He would deal with the guilt that came with that later. 

Rain and Aether wake at the same time. Jerked out of sleep both with the crushing feeling of danger and being finely tuned in to a certain fire Ghoul. Rising from the shared nest they carefully put themselves between Dew and the others. It wasn’t a state that they had witnessed the other in since the night that he had become a fire Ghoul. Horns elongated along the curve of his skull adorned in flames. Fangs dipped past his chin as he panted around them. The blood red of his eyes illuminated the room almost as much as the fire he currently wore as some bastardized halo. It was as close to their quote-unquote true forms as they could manage on the earthly plane. 

Speaking human English would hardly help them in this situation. Yet, Rain and Aether knew that slipping into their own tongue would wake the others. They weren’t going to have a choice the longer that this went on. Dew didn’t show any signs of calming down in the near future. 

A low growl leaves Rain first. A warning that draws Dew’s attention and answering growl. The exchange has Swiss sitting bolt upright, no doubt picking up on his mate’s distress. Aether had one shot at this or it was likely that this would turn bloody quickly. Swiss and Rain could hold their own, he knew. Yet, there was no need to add any more stress to the situation. Growling between the two quickly turns to snarling on Dew’s part. Luckily Aether knew his mate and knew the exact moment that he would lunge. Having sparred more than enough times Rain is just as privy to Dew’s movements, grabbing at the other’s wrists to keep his claws out of his throat. Aether snakes his arms around Dew’s middle and pumps the room full of whatever calming influence he can manage. 

Taking on the brunt of Aether’s ability, Dew only struggles for a moment or two before falling limp against them. Flames vanish. Horns, fangs, and claws retreat back to their normal length. 

“What the fuck was that!” Phantom pipes up from behind everyone who was now watching from the nest. 

“That — That…” Aether starts. 

“That’s what happens when you’re element shifts,” Mountain explains. “Something is affecting him. It’s been a long time since he’s lashed out at any of us and even longer since he’s lost control like that. He’s been acting odd for days.” 

“Something in the Ministry has been off for days…” Phantom offers, albeit quietly. 

“When he wakes up, we’ll all search the Ministry. If this is how it’s going to affect Dew we can’t take any chances.” No one bothers to question Mountain, there’s is just a resolute agreement that they would care for Dew and then take care of the issue. As a pack. 

They all knew that despite his outward facade; Dew would tear the world apart for any and all of them. 

── ⋅ ⋅ ── ⛧ ── ⋅ ⋅ ──

They wait two days for Dew to wake. Cirrus was gently running a cool cloth over his face when he shifts and blinks away the haze that clouds his vision. A hand almost instantly lifted to press against his head. A low rumble of discontent left him as quickly. 

“Easy, firefly. Your head is gonna hurt for a day or two,” she shushes as she pushes his hand back down to his side. 

“What happened…”

“Well, you gave us quite the fight. Whatever is going on drove you to bloodthirsty flaming hellspawn in the middle of the night,” she teases softly as she continues to run the cloth along his skin. “But Aether and Rain brought you back.” 

A groan sounds from him, hands coming up to cover his face. Guilt settled on his chest like a lead weight. “Satanas… no one got hurt, right?” 

“Nope. Didn’t touch a hair on anyone’s head. Gave the imps a heart attack though.” Small fingers pull his hands back down as she leans forward with a soft grin. “Don’t go to that place, Dew. We’re all just happy that you’re okay. Now sit tight, I’m going to go get that mate of yours. He’s been a mess.” 

Before she leaves there’s a glass of water pressed into his hands, she doesn’t have to say the words; he already knows what she wants him to do. Icy blue eyes roll at her, flipping her off before he tips the glass back against his mouth. As it was, he was far more thirsty than he’d originally thought. A few years ago he never had to think about drinking water. Now, it was almost always on his mind. A dull ache in the back of his throat. It made him thankful that he played no part in vocals during rituals unless he was messing with Swiss. 

There’s a short shoving match at the door not long after Cirrus had left. Rain and Aether trying to both fit through the door at the same time. It would have been amusing if his head wasn’t throbbing so painfully. The shoving almost instantly stops when a growl sounds from behind them. Cirrus and Cumulus push their way past the other two with their noses in the air. 

“I told you two not to be stupid,” Cumulus warns. And oh if Dew could bottle the look that crosses Rain and Aether’s faces with the chiding. 

“How long was I out that you two are acting like idiots?” 

“Two days,” Cirrus offers as she refills his glass. 

Dew chokes on the mouthful of water, coughing for a long moment before he gathers himself enough to speak again. 

“Two days!” 

“I — I might have overdone it when I tried to calm you down,” Aether pipes up scratching at the back of his neck. “You were two seconds off ripping Rain’s throat out.” 

“You didn’t though. Obviously.” The other in question supplies utterly unhelpfully. 

“We’ve all felt the anxiety though,” Mountain offers from the doorway. “We were waiting for you to wake up before we search the Ministry.” 

“I’ve been through the entire upstairs. There’s no reason for it…” 

“Well. Nine heads are better than one,” Cumulus states leaving no room for argument. “As soon as you’re ready we’ll start looking. Down here first and work our way up. With all of us, nothing will be able to slip past.” 

Dew wants to argue that it will be fruitless. But he can’t argue that whatever was going on was still happening. He hadn’t lost control like that in years. He hadn’t attacked anyone since his first few months after the change. He can only hope that it won't result in an all-out battle, he would be useless to them in this state. 

After several more glasses of water and a few good plates of food, his head had eased off to the level that he could stand without feeling as though he was going to be sick. It was no worse than an after-ritual headache now. Which he was more than thankful for. Once he was dressed in something that he could venture into the top floors of the Ministry in, he was hardly surprised that Aether sticks close to him. His mate was far too much of a worrier for his own good. 

“I’m fine, you know.”

“I know.” 

“We’ll figure out what's going on… and if we don’t — we’ll just have to tell Copia.” 

“Because he’ll know what's going on,” Aether snorts. 

“Careful, love. The Sister hears you saying that and she’ll banish you herself.” 

“She likes me too much to do that.” 

Well, Dew couldn’t disagree with that. Each of the Heads seemed to have their favorites when it came to the Ghouls. Copia seemed to favor the quieter Ghouls, the Ghoulettes, and Swiss. Sister Imperator attempted to pretend that she didn’t favor Aether and Swiss. Terzo had very obviously favored Alpha and Omega. Yet, it had never caused any sort of rifts between the Ghouls; they were by nature used to a less than monogamous pack dynamic. Sharing was just natural when it came to most things. Nothing survived The Pit on its own. 

Heading deeper into the Ministry underground was not likely an intelligent idea for any of them. Though there was unlikely to be anything down there, if that was where the threat was hidden — neither Dew nor Aether was prepared to fight whatever it was. Perhaps they could send a distress signal to the others and they would arrive quickly enough, but it was still unlikely. That wasn’t enough to stop them, however. It wasn’t even enough to stop them from splitting up further once they reached the very last floor, much to Aether’s chagrin. 

“Rain and Swiss are two floors up. Phantom and Cumulus are two floors up from them. If anything goes wrong, they’ll be here.” 

“You’re still recovering…” Aether argues. 

“When have you ever known me to let shit keep me down?” 

“Okay. Okay. But the smallest whiff of shit going wrong, you better start screaming.” 

Eyes roll at the taller Ghoul. “You know I can scream,” he smirks before running his nose along Aether’s jaw and setting off in the opposite direction. 

Almost instantly Dew regrets splitting off from Aether. The tightness in his chest doubles the moment that the other isn’t by his side. And he’s left entirely unsure if there was an actual threat down there or if his mind is playing tricks and setting his anxiety off. Alas, he was never one to back down from a challenge. Dragging in a deep breath is all that he can do to try to calm the nerves that seem determined to take him out. Boots knock against the stone floor as he stops before the summoning room. Where all Ghouls are brought into this plane. There hasn’t been a summoning in some time. Phantom and Aurora had been the last to be summoned. It was, of course, against the rules for anyone to enter the room without Nihil or Copia. But something was begging Dew to open the door. To step inside. 

Was it his time? Is this what Ifrit felt before he returned to The Pit to be regarded as royalty? Dew had little hope that that was his fate should he ever be recalled to their Master’s side. It was only the hope that they had held onto; that was what had to have happened to all of the Ghouls before them. It was what kept them sane. 

Gathering up what courage he could muster, he pushes the door open. The dull glow of candles that should have gone cold and gathered dust months ago wash the hallway in an orange hue. The static of old magic nipped at his flesh as the polished silver mask clatters to the stone. 

“By all that is unholy…” he breathes out. 

He’s moving before his mind can catch up with what was happening. Shouting Aether’s name before the sting of the protective magic around the summoning circle dances along his skin. Stripping him of any glamour that he’d put in place. Aether skids to a stop in the door, distress signal thick and harsh as it wafts up through the Ministry. 

Two tiny forms lay limp and nearly lifeless in the middle of the circle. Tiny tails and even smaller horns betrayed what they were looking at. If they had thought of Phantom and Aurora as imps purely because they were young and new to the plane —- this was a harsh wake-up call. Ghouls grew very differently than most creatures. Even in The Pit. By human standards, the imps couldn’t have been more than five years old. How had this happened?

Aether steps closer to the circle but Dew quickly throws up his hand. 

“No! I’m already trapped in here, you need to go and get Copia. He is the only one that will get here fast enough to get us out.” 

Logically Aether knew that was true, however, that didn’t stop him from worrying about his mate. He would rather not leave Dew trapped in a demon summoning circle that had for all they knew opened on its own and could do so again. 

“What are you going to do?” 

“I’m going to beg that they aren’t too far gone and that I can warm them up. Now go!” 

“Dew… you’re too weak to do that!” 

“So hurry up.” 

A string of curses leaves the larger Ghoul in a low growl. Of course, Dew knew that this was the last thing that Aether wanted to do. But they had very little choice. It wasn’t as though any of them could get him or the imps out of the circle without Nihil or Copia’s help. It was utterly foolish to set foot into it, especially in his state. Yet there he was, extending his ability to its limits in hopes that neither small being was beyond saving. By the time the others reach him the candles are burning high and hot. The entirety of his body was curled around the smaller ones in an attempt to share as much heat as he could possibly put out. 

The heat of the room doesn’t phase any of them as they filter in. Instinct kicking in the moment they all understand what was happening. Ghouls and Ghoulettes may come in all shapes, sizes, and element —- but they all had one thing in common; Pack Mentality. Though it varied in degrees, of course. One thing stayed the same across the board. 

Protect the young. 

Said instinct is turned against Copia as he appears in the doorway. All eight Ghouls currently occupying the room snarling at the sudden appearance of a being distinctly not Ghoul. Aether snarls right back at them hoping to be the voice of reason. Without Copia, Dew and the imps will die. Putting himself between their Head and the others, Aether snarls and snaps at those that refuse to back down. The Ghoulettes were decidedly more stubborn and unwilling to let Copia through, but they back down after a tense moment. 

Aether comes face to face with one last obstacle. The least surprising of all. Rain, of course, was hardly to blame for standing between them. Copia possessed the power to send all three back to The Pit and be done with the entire situation. Despite Aether’s trust that he would do no such thing. He could understand how instinct was hardly allowing logic to win out. It’s an entirely too-long battle of snarling and snapping teeth. Tails thrashing about like whips and claws clenching, until there is one moment of clarity that spares any bloodshed. 

“Rain…” It’s quiet, nearly drowned out by the sounds that rip through the two Ghouls. “Please. I don’t know how much longer I can do this…” 

Blue so dark they were almost black in the candlelight fades back to bright sky blue as all fight seeps from the younger Ghoul. Finally, Copia steps to the edge of the circle and falters at the sight before him. A low curse slipped from his lips. Sweat and flames cling to Dew’s flesh, clothes barely held together by mere threads. Exhaustion was clear on the Ghoul’s face. 

“Papa, please…” 

“Okay, okay. Give me a moment, yes?” 

It takes longer than a moment. Copia was clearly stressed as he attempts to lower the barrier that was meant to protect the humans of the Ministry from tumbling into The Pit. Never had he thought that he would be lowering it to rescue one of his Ghouls and two imps. This was not something that he’d been prepared for. The moment the magic drops Rain, Swiss, and Aether surge forward and pull all three free of the circle before the barrier snaps back into place. 

Cumulus and Cirrus scoop up the still vulnerable imps as Rain and Aether attempt to tend to Dew; who was putting up a fight against them. 

“Go. They’ll need you,” Dew urges as he weakly pushes at Aether. “They’ll be scared. You and Phantom are the only ones that can help…” 

Rain can’t even argue with that. Assuring the older Ghoul that he’d make sure that Dew got back upstairs, Aether finally concedes before pressing a kiss to Dew’s forehead and dragging Phantom upstairs. 

“Oh, my little Ghoul…” Copia coos as he kneels next to Dew. A gloved hand brushes against his face before it’s torn away with a hiss having been burnt by the sheer heat radiating from the fire Ghoul. “Let us not do something such as that again, yes? To lose you —- oh, it would break my little heart. Promise to Papa.” 

A breathy laugh sounds. “Promise, Papa.” 

Copia claps his hands together before shaking the hand that had been burnt in an attempt to negate the pain. “Very good! Now, up we get! Let us —- Let us get out of this creepy place. Shall we?” 

── ⋅ ⋅ ── ⛧ ── ⋅ ⋅ ──

Consciousness fades in and out. A voice here. A light there. Sometimes even a touch broke through the darkness that plagued him. Dew isn’t entirely sure how long he slips in and out of reality. His body seemed forever hot and left him entirely uncomfortable every time he woke. Satanas knows that currently, he prefers the blissful nothingness of sleep. 

It takes another three days of constant ice baths that Rain suffered through in desperate attempts to keep Dew from burning up. Constant care from the trio of Air Ghoulettes; changing the sheets and clothes that were forever drenched in sweat. And nearly round the clock reassurance from a certain Ghoul that was steadily growing more and more worried about his mate. Aether had hardly left Dew’s side for seventy-two hours. Only moving to feed himself and warm something that the barely conscious Fire Ghoul could consume. 

Yet, it wasn’t a single one of those things that had Dew finally sinking his claws into full consciousness. No, it was something completely benign. A soft conversation and the shift of the bed around him. 

“Is he ever going to wake up?” An unfamiliar voice asks in an overly familiar string of trills and chirps. 

“Soon,” a lower far more known voice answers in a deeper set of similar sounds. 

The Ghoul language, something they had all slipped into far less frequently the longer they were on the mortal plane. It was nice to hear it spoken so fluently. A sort of nostalgic feeling wells in Dew’s chest. 

“Can — can we lay with him?” another, less sure voice pleads. 

“Carefully,” Aether warns softly. 

If he had more energy, he might have laughed at his mate’s chiding. As if he would break with the slightest touch. Though Dew supposes that he could forgive the treatment given all that had happened recently. He couldn’t be sure that he wouldn’t at this point. There’s a moment of silence before the bed shifts around him and a hesitant pressure appears on both sides of him. There is no clever quip that leaves him. No tease or prank follows. Just the slow development of a soft purr that builds in his chest, the only indication that he was — well alive. 

A breath is dragged in through his nose; low and slow, before he shifts slightly to curl his arms about the small frames at either side. 

“Thought you knew better than to wake me up…” he breathes out, voice rough from disuse. 

“This seemed like an exception,” Aether offers. It was a testament to just how exhausted the Fire Ghoul was that he doesn’t tease his mate for how noticeably his voice wobbles nor the sniff that follows soon after. A hum sounds from the smaller Ghoul. 

“I’ll accept it.” 

Another silence falls over them, extending long enough that Dew nearly falls asleep once more. Though a shift of the bed that drags him back to consciousness. Attempting to follow a soft conversation not too far away that even his impeccable hearing couldn’t quite pick up. There’s soft purring surrounding him, soft nuzzling against either side of his chest. This was not where he expected to find himself —- well ever, let alone after being summoned to spread the word of their Master. Forcing his eyes open, there’s a tiny gasp to his left. A fang-filled grin forms on his lips as the tiny imp’s eyes widen and attempts to hide their face between his bicep and ribs. 

“Stop scaring him, brat.” The slow loll of his head reveals the appearance of Cumulus moving into the room, forever trying to keep him in line. 

“M’not scarin’ nobody…” 

A soothing trill leaves her in the imp’s direction, before turning her attention back to him. She spends entirely too much time poking and prodding at him, enough that Dew grows annoyed and bats her hands away from him after too long. 

“You’re pretty much a normal temperature for you. You’re clearly back to being yourself, bratty attitude and all. So I would say that you’re going to be just fine. Though I suppose this will feed that ridiculous ego of yours.” 

“Dunno what you’re talking about,” he snorts.

“Should we introduce them, or do you plan on hoarding them all night?” Rain snickers from the doorway. 

“Pretty sure I’m the one being hoarded,” Dew lifts a hand to flip the other Ghoul off. 

Cumulus runs her fingers through the hair of the imp closest to her, humming softly as she does. “Well, we’ve had a few days to bond with the little ones. They’ve been desperate to get in here since yours was the first scent they picked up, but we couldn’t get your temperature under control for the first few days.” 

“You pushed it too far, Dew…” Aether sounds upset and Dew couldn’t blame him. He was sure that he would be a lot louder had the roles been reversed. But he was a lot more volatile than Aether was. 

“It worked out…” That was entirely the wrong thing to say, and that much is obvious the moment the words leave his lips. Dew can see the anger rise in his mate until it’s seconds off exploding out of him and clearly Cirrus can see it too. Stepping between them, a low growl leaves her in a warning. 

“We’re not having this conversation in front of the imps.” 

Aether deflates almost instantly, though Dew can see that he’s still more than pissed off at the comment. A soft whimper sounds from the small beings against him, curling closer to him in an attempt to escape the emotions in the room. 

“I’m sorry,” Dew offers in hopes of smoothing things over at least for the moment. Aether could yell at him about it all later. Rain steps in, gently gripping both imps’ ankles and tugging carefully to get their attention. Urging them up to their feet on the bed, making them giggle wildly as they bounced and clung to Rain’s hands. Dew carefully pushes himself up into a sitting position, swallowing the growl that wants to leave him at the ache that comes to life in his back. 

“Alright, gremlins. Who are we?” Rain urges. 

“Nox!” One excitedly chirps with a wide grin on his face. 

“Ember…” the other offers, obviously a touch more shy than his brother. 

“And what do we say?”

“Hi Dew!” they trill in synch. It was kind of cute if Dew was being honest. 

“Their element hasn’t shown itself yet. But we have a pretty good idea what it will be,” Cumulus offers, leaning against Rain’s side and ticking Ember’s own to elicit a giggle from the small boy. Dew’s exhausted brain isn’t connecting the dots well enough for him to have any idea what she was trying to allude to. 

“You were affected so much for a reason, spitfire.” 

“You —- you think?” His disbelief is almost palpable. 

“It's the only explanation we can come up with.” 

The idea of it all was overwhelming. He hardly had any idea what he was doing, and hardly had control over himself. And yet now… now there were two tiny Ghouls that would need his help at some point in their lives. There was no way that he would be a good example. He wouldn’t even be a very good babysitter. He was entirely too exhausted to even consider the implications of any of this. Instead, he was left staring at the two imps that stood before him. Surrounded by his mate and pack. 

Again, Rain is the one that steps in. Clearly sensing the spiral that Dew was headed down. 

“Come on, little ones. Let's go find Swiss and see if we can get him to play.” 

Cumulus is the next to leave, urging Aether not to be too harsh on him and reminding them to call if they needed anything. One of them would bring them whatever they needed. With the imps out of the room, Dew allows himself to flop back against the bed, hands scrubbing at his face until he’s seeing spots behind closed eyes. This was a mess. There is a strangling tension that has settled over the room now that it was just him and Aether within its walls. He finds himself wishing that the other would just yell at him and get it over with. 

He’ll deny the way the bed shifting startles him. Moving his hands to peak through his fingers at the taller Ghoul. Aether wasn’t known for being an outwardly angry or violent being. So there was no real fear that welled up with the movement. Instead, the other Ghoul just looked… sad. Which was entirely worse in Dew’s opinion. He could deal with anger and yelling. But this… he was not good with this particular brand of emotions.

A breath leaves him before he’s pushing himself back up and crawling across the bed to deposit himself into Aether’s lap. His tail curls around one of Aether’s claves as arms do the same to his neck. A lame attempt at proving that he was okay. That he was alive and not going anywhere anytime soon. He doubts that that is the heart of the issue, but he can only hope that it helps in some small way. 

“You scared the shit out of me,” Aether signs when he finally gives in and snakes his arms around Dew’s middle. 

“I know.” 

“I thought I’d lost you. We couldn’t get you to cool down, I thought you were going to burn up and there wasn’t a fucking thing I could do…” 

“M’sorry.” His voice is muffled from where his nose is buried into Aether’s neck. 

“I’m not even mad at you. I should be. Satanas, I should be. You’re so fucking reckless that it’s insane. But I know you were trying to do the right thing…” 

“They’d have died…” Dew mumbles into the hollow of his throat. “They’d been there for days and we had no idea. I had to try.” 

“I know you did. I just —- Fuck, I had to look at them and deal with the guilt of knowing that I would hate them if anything happened to you. It’s stupid and I know I wouldn’t hate them forever. But fuck Dew…” 

“Hey.” Shifting, he tips his head back to look up at the other. “It’s gonna take a lot more than that to kill me. This was nothing compared to the element ritual.” 

Aether knocks their foreheads together, horns connecting in a way that should be painful yet only severed as a reminder that they were both alive and well. They stay that way for a long moment before Aether is closing the distance even more in a well earned kiss. For once in their lives it stays light and reassuring. There would be time for the filthy and debauched later. For now, Dew was entirely too exhausted and, surprisingly enough, eager to see the others in a better setting. He might have had some mild exhibitionist tendencies. But there was something unsettling about being trapped in bed and surrounded in an utterly nonsexual way. 

A hummed purr leaves him when the kiss breaks, bumping their noses together without bothering to move. Sharing oxygen was a gift that neither of them would be taking for granted again. “Ready to share yet, big guy?” 

There’s a soft growl that leaves Aether involuntarily at the question. Dew knows that it was because there’s an embarrassment that flickers across the other’s features before he’s being kissed once more. And if that wasn’t an answer, he didn’t know what was. 

It doesn’t take long before Aether is conceding to share. Dew is amused to find himself dressed in a pair of Rain’s pants and one of Aether’s shirts. A part of him wonders just what went on while he was out, but there would be time to ask about that later. For now, he was preparing himself to likely be tackled by the others the moment they knew he was out of bed. And he was correct. The moment that he crossed the threshold into the common room he finds himself sandwiched between Aurora and Phantom. He couldn’t fault them for their relief. They’d only known each other for a few months now. Dew couldn’t expect them to know that he’d survived worse. 

Soon enough Swiss is shooing them away and scooping him up as if he was an imp himself. In any other situation, Dew would have kicked and bitten and scratched to get out of the hold. Being picked up was his least favorite thing in the world. Yet, there was a certain comfort in it this time. His body nearly vibrated with the intensity of the purr rumbling through Swiss’ chest. 

Once on his feet again, he finds himself face to face with Rain. Who looks as though he wants to punch him in the face or kiss him. Thankfully the Water Ghoul goes for the latter option. Though the fangs that sink into his bottom lip are hardly looking to turn him on. Butting their foreheads together a hair less than gently, Rain sighs. 

“Don’t do shit like that again.” 

“Yeah yeah, I love you too, asshole.” 

Mountain thankful sticks to just a lingering hug that lasts only slightly longer than what it would have normally. His nose ran along Dew’s jaw before allowing the imps to drag him back to whatever they have been doing before this had all started. 

Maybe things would be okay after all.