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Once upon a time there was a beautiful princess who lived in a tower that was guarded by an evil dragon. The dragon was very mean to the princess, he wanted the princess to love him despite his horrible behavior. He was always calling her nasty names as he made her do all the chores. The princess was very sad, and all alone, except for her pet. Sparkles was a magical pig, capable of making the princess smile even when she was very, very sad.
“Like Fat Nuggets,” Poppy asked.
“Duh,” Chip replied. Poppy shoved her brother, nearly knocking him off the bed. “Hey!” Chip yelled, tugging on her wing in retaliation. Poppy snatched his tail but before she could really do anything, Alex put his hand over hers.
“Just because Chip is mean doesn't mean that you have to be mean back. If you two don't stop, Ma isn't going to finish the story.”
Poppy and Chip both looked over at Angel. Zephyr was curled up in his lap, sucking on her fingers as she silently watched her siblings. Angel held up two hands, shrugging. “Your brotha’s right. I'm only tellin’ tha story ta well behaved little demons. Maybe you two shouldn't sit next to each otha.”
Poppy let go of Chip’s tail. “We'll be good Mommy!”
Chip nodded enthusiastically. “Promise.”
Angel eyed them for a moment, using his best mother face. The one that said they better behave. “Alright. As I was sayin…”
The princess had no one but Sparkles until one day, a handsome knight was passing by the tower. He caught a glimpse of the beautiful princess and fell madly in love with her. He knew he needed to meet this princess but she was so far away, he didn't know how to reach her. This Knight was a special knight though, he had big beautiful wings that would allow him to fly up to the princess.
Just as he resolved to use his wings, the knight watched the dragon descend on the tower. He was a great big ugly beast. His huge red wings covered his body like a coat of armor when he wasn't in flight. His steely gaze could make men cower before him and his claws could rip anyone smaller right in half. But the worst part about the dragon was his mouth. He said the meanest things to the princess as he loved to make her cry. Sometimes, he even bit the princess. His bite was poisonous. It never killed the princess though, it just made her very sick.
Zephyr tugged on Angel's shirt and he paused in his story to look down at her. “What baby?”
She pulled her fingers from her mouth, talking quietly. “He sounds scary, Mommy.”
“Oh, he was, baby. The princess was terrified a him. He'd taken away everything that she loved, except fa Sparkles.”
Zephyr sat up, looking at Fat Nuggets where he sat on the floor. Nuggs oinked at her, wagging his little tail. Zephyr looked at Angel, that quiet little pout on her face. He couldn't resist her sad look any more than Husk ever could. She was so quiet all the time, unlike her siblings, but somehow she always got her way.
Angel reached down, picking up Nuggs in order to put him down next to her. Zephyr laid half her body across the pig as he laid down. She shoved her fingers back into her mouth, watching Angel as she absently played with Nuggs little ear.
The knight wanted to save the princess from the dragon but he knew he couldn't kill the fearsome beast alone. He would need the princess’ help. So he waited for the great beast to leave before he flew up to the window in her tower. Seeing the princess up close, he was even more enamored. She looked so sad in her tower room so the knight stepped inside.
When she noticed him she became frightened and angry. “Who are you to enter my home without my permission,” she asked.
The knight didn't want to scare the princess any more than she already was so he didn't get too close to her. “I am Sir H,” he told her. “I saw how sad and lonely you looked. I thought maybe you could use a friend.”
The princess just gave him a haughty look. “I don't need friends. I have Sparkles.”
Even though she rebuffed him, the knight knew that she was lying. While pigs make fine friends, it is not the same as having someone to truly love you. “Sparkles looks like a fine friend,” he told her. “You are lucky to have him. I would never make you be my friend. If you do not want me here, I will leave. I just saw you from the forest below and I thought perhaps you would be my friend. I have none, you see.”
The princess felt badly for being so mean. She did know how it felt to be without friends. The knight had scared her though. No one had ever come to visit her in her tower before. She lived there with just the evil dragon to keep her company and he was not nice to her. She feared the knight would not be nice either. But she felt a strange connection to the handsome knight and did not want him to leave.
“I suppose you may be my friend, Sir H. But you should stay over there. We do not need to be any closer.”
The knight was thrilled that the princess didn't just send him away. So he asked her what her name was and she told him that her name was Lady A.
“Ma?”
“Yes, Alex?”
“What was the dragon’s name?”
Angel smiled sadly at him. He knew why Alex was asking. The boy was smarter than he had any right to be. Sometimes he genuinely wondered how he'd turned out to be so sharp. Angel wasn't stupid but sometimes Alex made him feel like maybe he was when he started talking about things like molecular biology. He was only fifteen. Angel had been killing people at fifteen, but he wanted better for Alex. He wanted him to have a real childhood. Vox had already stolen most of it from him.
“Why don't ya give him a name,” Angel suggested.
“You can call him by his real name, ma. You don't have to spare my feelings cause it doesn't hurt them. I know Valentino was a bad man, everyone tells me.”
Angel huffed, irritated that anyone spoke about Valentino to Alex. At least, that they said bad things about him. Yeah, Valentino was complete shit, but he was Alex's father. Angel didn't want Alex to feel like maybe he was a bad person too just because of who his father was.
Alex looked away. “I'm sorry I asked.”
Angel tugged him close, hugging Alex to his side. “Neva be sorry fa askin, Alex. The dragon should have a name.”
“Ok. So what happened after the princess and the knight became friends?”
“Well…”
The knight visited the princess often, when the dragon wasn't around. He brought her little gifts that he made, hoping to cheer her up each time he saw her. Whenever he touched the princess, that strange feeling grew. The princess found herself waiting each time the knight was gone, hoping he would return each time. Even though the princess wasn't always the nicest friend. She had been alone so long that she didn't know how to be friends with someone.
The dragon still came often, and sometimes even when he wasn't there, the princess would think about all the mean things he said. She was very sad whenever her knight wasn't around. Not even Sparkle's company was enough any longer. She had grown to need the knight's company too. Though she didn't tell the knight how much she needed him. She was still afraid but now she was afraid the knight wouldn't come back. For the princess had fallen in love with the knight and she did not know he felt the same way.
She began to think about how she wished she could leave the tower so she could always be with the knight. But she knew she never could because the evil dragon would kill the knight if he knew of his existence. The knight was very clever though. He knew that the princess longed to leave her tower, she just lacked the wings to fly away.
The knight began to tell the princess stories of the adventures he had when he left the tower. He knew that if he made her want to leave badly enough then she would help him kill the dragon. The knight had come to understand that she was terrified of the dragon, too afraid to leave. But his plan worked and one day the princess told the knight that she loved him and no longer wished to be without him. When she kissed the knight, it was so magical that the whole world stood still for just a little while.
You see, the knight was a magical knight and his kiss set the princess free. She knew then that all of the things the dragon told her were lies. She wasn't weak or worthless, she was strong and smart. The knight’s love for her helped her see that she was beautiful and brave. Brave enough to confront the dragon.
Angel looked over at the doorway, where Husk now stood. He'd known what Angel was doing. In the last five years, they'd grown to understand their bond more and more. Zestial had been right, sometimes they were in perfect harmony, unable to tell who thought what first. They'd learned though, with time and a whole lot of effort, how to separate themselves most of the time. Knowing what the other was up to, how they felt, was always just a thought away.
Husk smiled at him and Angel knew how much he was enjoying the story. How adorable he thought Angel was. Angel stuck his tongue out at Husk. All the children looked at him. Zephyr made a happy squeal before she abandoned Angel and Nuggs, flitting over to her daddy quickly. He held his arms open, closing them around her as she flew into his chest. Husk loved all their children equally but he became so happy every time Zephyr was excited to see him.
“Daddy,” Chip shouted, “come listen to Mommy’s story with us!”
Husk kissed Zephyr's head as he made his way to the other side of their bed. He climbed up next to Angel and Poppy climbed into his lap too. She was a rather jealous little thing sometimes. Poppy didn't like her siblings to have more attention than her. Not that she didn't love her Daddy, but she only climbed on him when Zephyr clung to him.
Not to be outdone by his sisters, Chip threw himself across Angel's lap, looking up at Alex as he landed. Alex tapped Chip’s nose with a finger causing the little deviant to giggle.
“Don't let me interrupt your story, Fluff.”
“Yeah, Mommy. Did they kill the dragon,” Chip asked.
“Sometimes, it's ain't so easy ta kill dragons,” he answered.
The princess and her magical knight hatched a plan to defeat the evil dragon. It was a simple plan. The princess would lure the dragon inside, where he would be too big to fight properly. Then the knight would slay the dragon.
The only problem was that the dragon had seen the knight coming and going. He'd kept the fact that he knew from the princess, pretending that nothing had changed. The dragon saw more than the princess ever knew he did and he was a jealous dragon. He did not want to share the princess with anyone. When he arrived, he knew the knight was hiding inside the tower, waiting to slay him. The dragon wrapped his body around the roof as he began to say very nasty things to the princess. She tried to get him to come inside but he knew the knight lay in wait and so refused.
He didn't leave though. No, the evil dragon sat outside the princess’ window, saying mean things to her long into the night. Even though the princess knew they weren't true things, she began to forget as the dragon taunted her. Eventually the princess began to cry, she was so heartbroken by the nasty things he said.
The knight could no longer hide. His love for the princess was too great for him to watch her be hurt this way. So he left his hiding place and climbed out of the tower window. The princess cried out for him not to fight the dragon outside but it was too late. The evil dragon snatched up the magical knight and flew away with him to his lair.
The princess could see his lair from her tower but she had never been inside it. She was distraught as she watched them fly away for she knew if she did not rescue the magical knight then the dragon would surely kill him. She had never left the tower before, too afraid the dragon would punish her. She didn't have wings like the knight did, so she despaired of rescuing him.
The knight had told the princess over and over how brave and strong she was. She kept that in her mind as she climbed out of the tower window. The princess was terrified, the ground was so far away, and she didn't know if she could climb down the tower. Sparkles climbed onto the ledge with her, and using his special piggy magic, he made the princess happy. It banished the princess’ fear and she began to climb down the tower with Sparkles on her head.
The triplets all giggled. “But Mommy,” Poppy called out, “what if Sparkles fell! He'd die!”
“Don't worry, Poppy. Magical pigs have special abilities. Sparkles couldn't fall,” Angel explained.
“Are you sure,” Chip asked. “Did Sparkles have wings?”
“The princess didn't have wings and she didn't fall,” Alex argued. “Right, Ma?”
“Of course not,” Husk answered. “Some princesses are very good climbers. They don't need to be caught because they won't fall.”
Angel and Husk exchanged a look. He knew Husk was talking about the night he'd caught Angel when he jumped off of the hotel. The first time they'd touched for more than a brief moment. He'd never forget the way it felt, their magic trying vainly to mix the way it wanted to. Husk put a hand on Angel's cheek and Angel leaned his face into it. It still felt just as good when Husk touched him now. He didn't think it would ever stop feeling that way, no matter how long they lived.
“Then what happened,” Chip asked, tugging on Angel’s shirt.
Once the princess reached the ground she raced through the forest, as fast as her feet could carry her, until she came to the dragon's lair. She was out of breath, and terrified, but she didn't hesitate to rush into danger. As scary as the dragon was, being without her knight forever was much scarier. Inside the dragon's lair she found her love in the evil dragon’s grasp. The dragon had been hoping she would come, you see.
“Look who has come, Sir H,” the dragon called. “It is the worthless princess, here to save you.” The evil dragon laughed at the princess. “Do you truly think you can best me, little princess? I own you and you will be mine forever. I will eat your knight while you watch and then you will live with me forever!”
The princess stood tall though. She wasn't afraid of the dragon anymore. Instead she was angry. The evil dragon had stolen everything from her, locked her away from everyone, and hurt her every day for too long. She couldn't live that way anymore. She knew that she would rather die trying to save her love than live with the dragon forever without him.
But the princess was smart, she knew how treacherous the dragon could be and how quickly he could take the knight from her. So she lied to the dragon for the very first time.
“I am sorry that I hid the knight from you,” she told the dragon. “It was wrong of me to give my affection to anyone other than you. Kill him if you must, but please don't leave me alone in the tower any longer. I long to be with you when you leave. I only met with the knight because I was so sad when you left me every day.”
The princess moved right up to the dragon as she spoke, laying a hand on his great big chest. The dragon was stunned by the princess’ confession. But he believed her because the evil dragon thought he was the greatest being in existence, that no one could compare to him. Still, the dragon was a cruel beast, so he decided to hurt the princess one last time before he made their new home in his lair.
“If you truly want to be with me forever, then you must prove your love and slay your knight.”
“Nooo,” Poppy cried. “He can't make the princess do that, Mommy!”
Husk chuckled as he brought Poppy up to his chest too. She clung to him and Zephyr with all her arms. Zephyr took one of her sister's hands, comforting her. Husk kissed her little head.
“Just listen to the story, baby. I think it will be ok in the end. The princess is very smart and brave.”
“Just like ma,” Alex added.
“Exactly,” Husk agreed. “Mommy is very smart and brave. He always makes everything better, doesn't he?”
Chip grabbed a hold of Angel's shirt, pulling his head closer to Angel's body. “Always.”
It was moments like this that made Angel so glad he'd killed Val fifteen years ago. It had been the single most difficult thing he'd ever done but if he hadn't, he would never have found all of this. He could feel how proud Husk was of him for doing so, and how grateful he was that Angel had done it.
“Finish the story, Mommy,” Poppy demanded.
“We'll if ya quit interruptin, ya little hooligans.” A chorus of giggles met his ears as he continued.
“I would do anything for you,” the princess promised the dragon. “Bring him closer so that I might take his sword and run him through his belly.”
The great evil dragon chuckled as he brought the knight to her. The ring of steel as she took his sword was loud in the silence of the cave. She looked the knight in the eyes and he boldly stared back. She saw no fear from him as she raised the sword high, only trust that she would never hurt him.
The great big dragon roared in pain as the princess slid the sword into his chest instead. He threw the knight across the cave as he swiped at the princess with his great big claws. The princess was swift though and she avoided the dragon's deadly claws. The beast fell over then, as the princess had pierced his heart, a wound not even such a foul creature could survive.
The princess left him to die as she raced over to her true love, the knight. The dragon had hurt him when he'd thrown the knight and he lay still on the cave floor. As the dragon took his last breath, the spell he had over the princess broke for good. The princess knew now that the dragon had never had any power over her, he'd only made her think that he had.
She was a powerful princess but the dragon had made her forget that with all of his cruel words. Now she remembered though. So with a kiss on his lips, the princess healed the knight with her love for him. Finally, the princess was free and her knight was safe. They quickly married and soon had a beautiful baby. Then they ruled over the land together, happy for the rest of their days.
“I want a princess to marry,” Poppy sighed.
Angel laughed at that. “Well, maybe someday, when you're olda, you'll find one.”
“I want a sword,” Chip announced loudly.
Angel and Husk exchanged another look. “Uh, maybe someday, son,” Husk responded. “You're a little small for one right now.”
“What about you,” Angel asked Zephyr as he poked her belly.
Zephyr pulled her fingers from her mouth, clutching Husk's shirt with her little hand. “I wanna knight like Daddy.”
Angel covered his mouth as he laughed. Husk looked undecided if he thought that was cute or not. “You want a knight like me?”
Zephyr nodded. “Then I can save him.”
“Oh, baby. That's so sweet,” Angel told her.
She simply popped her fingers back into her mouth. Husk squeezed the girls close for a moment. “Alright. I think it's time for little demons to go to bed.”
“Nooooo,” Chip cried. He tried to fly out of Angel's lap but he wasn't fast enough.
Angel snatched him with two hands, pulled him back, and gave him kisses all over his little neck. He squealed in laughter, squirming away from Angel. “I love ya little one but if’n ya don't go ta bed there'll be no cartoons tomorrow.”
Chip slumped forward, defeated. “Yes, Mommy.”
Angel kissed him one more time before letting him go. He gave hugs and kisses to the girls as well before Husk followed them out of the room. Then Angel turned his attention to Alex. He'd been awfully quiet at the end of the story. Angel pushed Alex's hair out of his face, smiling at him.
“What's wrong, baby?”
“Ma… was the dragon really Valentino or was it Vox?”
Alex knew a lot about what Angel had been through. More than he should, but between everything Vox had told him, the questions he'd asked over the years, and what other nosey assholes said… He knew too much.
“Tha dragon was kind a both but really neitha a them.”
Alex's face scrunched up. “What?”
“Ya know Vox and Val did a lot of terrible things but they wasn't tha problem. Tha problem was my own mind, Alex. When ya believe ya deserve otha people's bad behavior, even when they're gone they still have powa ova ya. I might have saved myself from Val, and rescued ya fatha from Vox, but what ya fatha did fa me was even bigga. He showed me how wrong everyone was about tha things they said, tha way they treated me. Showed me how wrong I was about tha things I thought about myself. What otha people think a ya only has powa if ya let it, baby. I slayed tha dragon in my mind but without ya fatha's sword a truth, I neva would a been able ta.”
Alex stared at the bed for a few minutes before he looked back up at Angel. “I understand. But I'm still glad you killed them.”
Angel felt a lot of emotions about that statement, too many to try to decipher them right now. He hadn't even realized Alex knew he was the one to kill Valentino. He shouldn't be surprised though. All of Hell knew. They'd just never talked about it.
“I'm sorry, Alex.”
“For what?”
“I took ya fatha away from ya. Twice.”
“No, you didn't. You killed bad men who hurt you, and me. Husk is my father, not them. You shouldn't apologize, Ma.”
Alex gave him a big hug before he left the room. He'd come so far from where he'd been when Angel found him. He would always be awkward and too logical, a little too detached from his emotions. What Vox had done to him… Some of it couldn't be fixed, but he wasn't the same boy he'd been before. He didn't shy away from affection if he trusted someone, and he'd developed an endless curiosity for how everything worked. From people's minds to the molecular makeup of demons. He really was a sweet boy too. Gentle and caring.
Angel flopped back onto the bed, laying there while he waited for Husk to come back. The cat didn't keep him waiting for long. He crawled up on the bed, hovering over Angel.
“You gotta stop feeling fucking guilty, Fluff. Alex loves you. He doesn't blame you and I don't think he's missing out on shit.”
“I know… He's betta off without eitha a them. I just feel like I stole something from him.”
“Yeah,” Husk snorted. “A lifetime of abuse.”
Angel made a noise of agreement. He knew Husk was right. Alex had even just told him so. Maybe it was time for him to let it go, to stop worrying that he'd done something to hurt Alex. He didn't feel hurt, and his feelings could be hurt, they definitely knew that. Husk quickly put an arm under Angel’s waist and rolled them so he was on his back, Angel on top of him. Angel laughed as he looked down at Husk.
“What ya doin there, Whiskas?”
“I'm beat. I think we need a vacation. Somewhere with a beach, preferably.”
“Well, since Stolas still can't access Earth, I think that'll take a while ta happen. We could take tha kids ta Lu Lu World though!”
Husk groaned. “Really?”
“They love it!”
“Yeah, I know they do but that's not a vacation. That's more work than the damn casino. Can't we go somewhere… alone?”
Angel smiled at him suggestively. “Alone? Somewhere I can be real loud?”
Husk ran a hand over Angel’s backside, grabbing a handful of his ass. “That sounds great, Fluff. I like it when you scream for me.”
Angel kissed Husk, his hands roaming over the cat, two of them fisted into the back of Husk's furry head. Husk's hands immediately found any avenue under Angel’s clothing that they could. They were both breathing heavily when Angel pulled away, eyeing Husk.
“I heard that!”
Husk grinned at him. “I know.”
“You were just complainin about them bein a lot a work!”
“Well… not right now. When they're bigger. Like, a lot fucking bigger.”
Angel sighed, rolling his eyes. “Someday, Husk. If we're even powaful enough ta do it again, then we can.”
Husk's face lit up. “Really?”
Angel smiled at him, cupping the cat's face with his hands. “Really. But not fa at least anotha twenty years. I need more time ta forget how much it hurt doin it tha second time.”
Husk laughed at that. “Fair enough, Fluff. Fair enough.”
“Besides,” Angel added, “that'll give us twenty years ta practice.”
“Practice what? Raising them?”
Angel giggled. “No, Husk. Makin em.”
“Mmm. I can get behind that. Quite literally. Why don't you show me that sexy ass, Anthony?”
“Anything fa you, Alexei.”