Blinded by the overwhelming burst of angelic magic, Amara didn’t realize what had happened until it was too late. Vee had stopped her from killing Davenport and, in the process, taken the sword Amara had planned on suffering through. Stunned, Amara stared back at Vee, who barely seemed to register the blade that jutted out from her chest. She stumbled backwards, the light in her eyes dimming, when Davenport’s magic coalesced around her.

The sword left her body, and a portal appeared behind her. When Vee collapsed, she fell into Davenport’s magic and disappeared from Amara’s view.

“VEE!!”

Agonizing pain fueled Amara's screech of desperation as she leapt after Vee. She barely made it through the portal before it closed, and she saw where Davenport had sent them.

They were miles above the ground, the crackling fires of the quad far behind them. Other than rushing air and the sound of her frantic heartbeat, Amara heard nothing. Vee was falling headfirst towards the Earth, and Amara flattened her wings to close the distance between them.

The air surrounding Vee crackled with impossible energy. Arcs of angelic lightning danced across her body, as if the very miracle that had created her now struggled to hold her together. Her eyes were closed, her body unmoving as Amara shouted out to her, desperate for proof that Vee was still alive. A powerful burst of angelic energy exploded out from Vee, washing over Amara and forcing her away.

Vee’s aura burned. Amara's body screamed in protest of the collision, but even her immense strength paled in comparison to the last gasps of Vee’s existence. As the Enochian pulse washed over her, it burned away her blinding rage and scattered her thoughts.

Amara bounced her leg up and down as she glanced back at the doorway behind her. Students were slowly filtering in, speaking with the teacher, then moving to their assigned seats. Amara, terrified of being late or getting lost on the way, had gotten to class incredibly early, and now she regretted her decision. She’d read about this class online over the summer; apparently, it was nothing but group projects, which had Amara incredibly nervous about who she might be partnered with.

Would they get along? Would she hate them? She hated introductions, and had no idea what to say to whoever might be assigned to her group. Turning away from the door, she buried her nose in her phone again to keep herself distracted.

“Let’s see… Miss Bennett? Ah, there we go. You’ll be over at Table Three, with Miss Lamour.”

Amara froze up. This was it.

The strange Miss Bennett’s footsteps grew closer and closer, then the chair beside Amara slid out. Looking to her left, Amara gasped as she saw the first of her group.

She was breathtakingly gorgeous, with short blonde hair and a bright smile that somehow managed to chase away all of Amara’s anxieties about their meeting. A deep blue henley revealed she was in fantastic shape, her athletic body accentuated by her perfect posture. Amara instantly felt a pang of jealousy as she took in the incredible sight of this stranger, her mixed opinions about her own body flaring up once again in contrast.

“Hi there!” the blonde-haired Miss Bennett said. She sat down next to Amara, holding out her hand with a smile. “I’m Vee!”

“I-I’m… Amara,” she managed to stutter. She grabbed Vee’s hand and nervously shook it, forcing herself to finish her sentence. “Amara Lamour.”

Vee laughed, a brilliantly effortless thing that cut through Amara’s nervous stammering and encouraged her to smile back. Talking with Vee felt easy, miraculously, and she stopped bouncing her knee as they got to know each other. Suddenly, the thought of countless group projects didn’t sound so bad.

Amara gasped as Vee’s aura finished passing through her. The pain receded, but so did the rage, the anger, the indignation. Her body shifted back to its usual size, her skin no longer a scorching shade of red. The world around her seemed clearer, only to immediately grow hazy again due to the tears that welled at the corner of her vision.

Angling her wings towards Vee, Amara forced through the ambient Enochian lightning that encircled her friend. Fighting through the pain, she managed to grab Vee’s shoulders, and hugged her tight as she prepared to fly them both to safety. She had to believe Vee’s magic would keep her alive, heal this terrible injury. The powerful storm encompassing Vee, however, prevented Amara from opening her wings. No matter how much she pushed herself, she couldn’t fight against Vee’s aura.

“A…Amara?” Vee whispered, her voice incredibly faint.

“Vee!” Amara gasped, cradling Vee’s face in her hand. “Why did you do that? Why did you stop me?!”

“I was… saving you.”

“I would’ve been fine, Vee! We both know I would have survived that!”

Vee shook her head, her brilliant blonde hair briefly covering her face. Amara tenderly brushed it away, then Vee continued. “From yourself, Amara.”

“I-I don’t… Vee, I was doing this for us! For you!” Amara protested.

Vee shook her head. “No, you weren't. If we fought now, like this, you would have killed me, Amara.”

Amara gasped. She wanted to protest, to swear that everything she’d done had been for Vee, always for Vee, but as she held Vee’s dying body in her hands, it was impossible to deny the truth of her words. Tears, unable to stream down her face due to the heavy winds around them, scattered into the sky as she held Vee close.

Vee gasped in pain, and the lightning surrounding her burst out again. It assaulted Amara’s essence, shoving her dozens of feet away from Vee as it scattered her thoughts once again.

Deep, heavy club music pulsed around Amara as she leaned against a wall in the corner of the basement. She still couldn’t believe she’d let her friends talk her into going to a party, and she had no idea what she was supposed to do with herself. Tessa had tried dancing with her briefly, but was incredibly drunk, and obviously wanted the dancing to give her an excuse to make a move on Amara.

Blushing as she recalled Tessa’s latest attempt to get in her pants, she looked down at the black mini dress her friends had convinced her to wear. It was tiny! She was terrified that any slight movement might expose her underwear, and grabbed its hem to pull it down as far as she could.

It wasn’t just the music overwhelming her, either. If she hadn’t been absolutely sure that she hadn’t drunk anything since arriving, she would have been worried that someone had slipped her something. She occasionally caught herself staring at strangers, convinced their skin was glowing or that the club lights were bending around them. At other times, she swore that everyone had just chugged an incredibly sugary drink, as she caught infrequent whiffs of a powerfully delectable scent that she couldn’t quite identify.

Had this been a mistake? This was supposed to be a chance to let loose, shake off the stress of school, so why was she hiding in a corner?

“Amara, there you are!” Vee yelled, barely audible over the pounding bass. Her elegant white dress hung off one shoulder, perfectly flattering her athletic body. It stopped at her mid-thigh, covering slightly more than Amara’s dress, though an off-center slit in the fabric tastefully exposed even more of her leg. “What are you doing back here? They’ve got really great music tonight!”

“Well, I just… I dunno, Tessa was trying to get me to dance, and I—”

“Oh, c’mon, we both know she’s just looking for an excuse to cop a feel.” Vee grabbed her hand, pulling her out onto the dance floor. “The trick is to let go. Don’t worry about what other people want from you, just move with the music and do what feels natural.”

Vee’s smile always managed to calm her nerves, and Amara relented, allowing herself to be pulled into the crowd of people. Vee’s infectious enthusiasm not only caused the other students to make room for her, but it also inspired Amara to give this an honest chance. Even if she hated it, she could at least say she tried.

Turning to face her, Vee grabbed Amara’s other hand and started moving with the beat. Amara did her best to copy her friend’s movements, though she couldn’t help but feel self-conscious about her dancing.

Moments later, Vee leaned in closer, her lips nearly tickling Amara’s ear. “Amara, you’re so stiff! Come on, dancing isn’t just jumping in time with the music, you have to let the music flow through you. Here, let me help.” Vee’s hands found her waist, then her hips, and she tried to help Amara mimic her movements. They were incredibly close now, and as Amara looked in Vee’s eyes, she started to understand the appeal of the music. She began rolling her hips in time with Vee’s, which caused her to beam with excitement as she congratulated Amara for figuring it out.

Vee raised Amara’s hands into the air then turned around, crossing their arms so that Amara now held Vee. Their bodies pressed together, both of them dancing in perfect harmony, and the strange sensations from earlier appeared again.

Amara swore that Vee’s skin was sparkling under the party lights, and her strawberry floral perfume had suddenly become even sweeter. She grabbed Vee’s hips, pulling her even closer. They both gasped and panted in unison as they danced, their bodies a single unit of carefree joy. As curious as she was to figure out what was happening, she couldn’t deny that she was having a fantastic time.

When the song ended, the strange sensations had grown too powerful to ignore. A familiar itch had appeared in her core, and she no longer had the will to fight it. Excusing herself from the dance floor, Amara left to find Nick.

The second wave of Enochian magic finally fizzled out. What was happening to her? Why was she suddenly recalling random memories?

Amara shook her head, then forced her way back into the storm surrounding Vee. Countless bolts of iridescent lightning crackled and leapt off Vee’s body, and a sickening clap of thunder rang in Amara’s ears. Despite the impossible lighting trying to force her away, searing her skin with all the wrath of Heaven, she kept pushing closer. There had to be something she could do for Vee.

As they reconnected, Amara pulled Vee close again. “Vee… I’m sorry. I never wanted this. I just wanted to keep us safe, to keep you safe, and now…” She didn’t dare finish her thought.

Vee opened her eyes, the light inside her slowly flickering softer and softer. “I don’t care if I’m safe, Amara, so long as we’re together. You’re losing sight of who you are because you’re so focused on who you think you need to be. What do you

want, Amara? Truly?”

What do I want?

Another blast of powerful angelic energy exploded out from Vee, causing her to scream out in pain. Despite how much it hurt, Amara refused to let go this time, and hugged Vee tight while she suffered through the storm.

More memories appeared, this time even more scattered. Amara remembered when her tail first appeared, then her horns and her wings. She remembered the first time she’d shapeshifted, how she’d turned into Vee without any understanding of how or why. She remembered being attacked by Derek, paralyzed with fear as he held her down. Her hellfire had first appeared that very night, but not because she’d been attacked.

Her hellfire, the flames of her existence that illuminated every corner of her soul, had only sparked to life because Derek had threatened Vee.

Amara remembered their fight on Halloween, how the worst part had been learning how badly she’d hurt Vee without even realizing it. She remembered how desperate she’d been to earn Vee’s forgiveness, to convince Vee to still be in her life. She flashed forward to Purgatory, how they’d finally rekindled their friendship, finding comfort in each other’s warmth as they braved the horrors together.

It had always been Vee.

Everything she sought to protect, everything she fought for, everything she wanted.

“What do I want?” Amara asked, repeating Vee’s question. Here, in the face of potentially losing her forever, the answer had never been more clear.

“I… I want you, Vee.”

Vee opened her eyes in shock, the dim light inside her soul still fighting for survival. Tears welled in her eyes, and with the last of her strength, she reached for Amara’s face, softly caressing her cheeks. Amara wrapped her arms around Vee’s waist, pulling her even closer as they stared into each other’s eyes, their souls finally laid bare before each other.

They leaned in. Hesitation. A silent question, a silent answer. Vee's hands slid back, pulled Amara closer, and they kissed.

Time froze as they held each other. The wind stilled, the clouds parted, and the first rays of the morning sun breached the horizon as their lips met. It bent and twisted around Vee as she ran her hands through Amara’s hair, treasuring her touch just as Amara did as she held Vee’s waist. Iridescent rainbows built from impossible colors swirled around them both, their opposing auras dancing together in chaotic celebration.

Nothing in Amara’s life had ever felt more right. Even in the midst of an angelic storm, her prior strength having been completely dispelled, she now held the one thing that mattered most to her. Barely able to contain her excitement, she raised her hands to Vee’s face to shower her in adoration as they continued kissing. In between their silent admissions, they both laughed in joy at having found each other, and that laughter breathed new life back to the amazing woman that was Amara’s everything.

The light surrounding them pulled closer, enveloping Vee in impossibly vibrant radiant energy. It banished all traces of her injury before settling just underneath her essence, becoming a part of her. Its warmth, despite how much it bristled against Amara’s hellfire, was the most welcome feeling she could imagine.

“I love you, Vee,” Amara whispered, resting her forehead against Vee’s.

“I love you too, Amara,” Vee replied. “More than anything. More than I understand, more than I could possibly express.”

Their lips met again, softly and tenderly. “You could have died, Vee. I was a monster.”

Vee shook her head. “I knew that wasn’t you. I know who you are, Amara. You fought for months to earn my forgiveness. You pulled me back from the edge of insanity, you stopped me from losing myself to my fear. All I wanted was to do the same, to convince you to see yourself the way I do.”

“I-I hurt so many people, Vee, I—”

“I forgave you, didn’t I?” Vee whispered, kissing Amara again. “You convinced a literal angel to fall in love with you, silly. You just have to show them who you really are. Show them the beautiful soul I know you have. As long as we have each other, anything is possible.”

Amara laughed, tears streaming down her face as she kissed Vee. “Us against the future, right Vengeance?”

“Us against the future, Hellspawn,” Vee responded, throwing her arms around Amara’s shoulders and kissing her harder than ever. When their lips finally parted, Amara saw that an incredible rainbow now danced across Vee’s face, and she raised her eyes. Just above Vee’s head, glowing with impossibly vibrant energies, a swirling halo of iridescent light softly flickered. Countless bands of multicolored light crackled as they raced around a tight circle, their energy so concentrated Amara nearly missed that they all moved independently.

Vee followed Amara’s gaze, beaming with excitement as she reached up. She passed her fingers through the halo, briefly scattering its racing light into small bands of pearlescent rainbows, only for more to coalesce in its place. Following the scattered colors, Vee finally looked at the surrounding sky, gasping in surprise at what she saw.

Amara did the same, and immediately understood her bemusement. “Vee, how are we floating?”

“I don’t know!” Vee said, her sweet voice on the edge of laughter. They allowed themselves a moment of peace, another tender kiss, before Vee whispered, “We should get back. We have no idea how long this will hold.”

Nodding in agreement, and stealing one more kiss from the love of her life, Amara pulled Vee against her chest and angled her wings to prepare for descent. Vee held tight, her arms wrapped around Amara’s waist, and they began to fall. Amara’s wings caught the wind, holding them steady as she steered them back towards campus. Whatever awaited them back on Earth, no matter how terrifying it might be, she wouldn’t be facing it alone.

Behind them, miles above the Earth, the wind resumed its usual course. It held aloft a single feather, one as white as the light of heaven, its edges clad in immaculate golden iridescence. It skipped and danced through the air, spreading rainbows in its wake, before vanishing in a flurry of lights.