We were besties, and we’d made a pact not to go back to our exes. Looked like I was the only one who’d kept to it.
“Hey! Don’t judge me. Bitch can suck a dick like she is sucking down cream from a cannoli, and I’m the one who had to deal with her wailing and fighting with me all the time when we were broken up. That was worse than actually hooking up with her occasionally, so I picked the lesser of two evils.” He huffed, but his eyes held a sadness in them. Like he was disappointed with himself.
I tried to turn it all around as I patted him on the back, hating when he started to beat up on himself like that. “Hey, it's okay. I totally get it. I just want better for you, that's all.” I smiled up at him and he gave me a squeeze. “Now let's get away from the bitch to give you some much needed reprieve, eh?” My new mates were glaring at me, but I ignored it; I was comforting a friend and they needed to get over it.
He nodded in excitement, and in a flash, he winked us to the entrance of Gluttony.
Moddroppedusoffand waved goodbye to us on the tips of his toes as we went past the barrier, yelling for us to come visit him again soon. The guys all looked at him like he was crazy to think they would want to visit, but I replied that I would soon. It was one of the things that made me so sad about the princes. They were all so lonely in their own ways, whether they admitted it or not, stuck to the sin lands they ruled.
Gluttony was completely different from Lust. Where Lust was kind of barren so that all you could focus on were the stone statues, in Gluttony, it was the opposite. There were tables and tables of food, trinkets, books, weapons. Anything that you could possibly have an unhealthy addiction to was here, out in the open. Winding between all the tables was a river that was made of pure molten gold, which rippled whenever a soul's hand or head reached out past the surface.
War learned pretty quickly that as soon as you tried to grab for the food or items on the table, they would disintegrate like sand through your fingers, then in the next second show up again, twinkling like it was shiny and real again. Calling for you to take it.
It didn't take long for Belphagor, the Prince of Gluttony, to show up. The guys all did a double take when they saw him, because he looked exactly like Mod, except his hair was a chocolate brown and he kept it in a shorter style that curled around his ears.
Bel always had such a big personality, so it didn't surprise me when his booming voice yelled across the land to greet us. He had almost the same reaction to my eyes as Mod did, but he also started to make fun of me, telling me I had my work cut out for me with him and his brothers.
Just like in Lust, my Gluttony sin magic was bursting at the seams to be used in its land. It wanted to trick souls into believing they got something and then watch their soul crush as we took it away. I hushed it up as we kept walking through the circle.
I grumbled about having to deal with the princes before I asked him to wink us to the Sloth circle entrance. He gave me a weird look as he opened his mouth, but I knew what he was going to say or really, who he was going to mention in front of my new mates, so I pinched him hard. He yelped but took the hint and winked us there, rubbing his arm as he said goodbye and to come back when I was in a nicer mood. I laughed in his face.
The circle of Sloth had a forest entrance that looked like it came out of theLord of the Rings. The trees felt like they curved into you, so dense and thick that you could barely see a few feet in front of you and eerily silent. The guys all hesitated, but I just smiled and pressed forward. I always enjoyed Sloth’s circle because it was the most entertaining land, except for Abaddon's castle. It was like a giant pillow fort on the inside; all the hallways and rooms had a bed, cot, hammock, or pull-out couch. All at the ready for a nap at a moment’s notice. Lazy bastard.
As soon as we entered, the trees started talking to us. They told us about their days, what they liked, what they didn't like, who had recently suffered here, and how they suffered. After a few minutes, I looked back. All of the guys had their hands on their ears but Fame. As his eyes found mine, I smiled at him, impressed he could take all of this for the first time.
He smiled back, shrugging his shoulders as he mouthed, “Lawyer.” A small chuckle escaped my lips, and his smile got wider. I guess lawyers do hear a lot of nonsense from their clients all day long.
My Sloth magic was slow growing but no less insistent to come out and explore the land it's most comfortable in. My Sloth magic was my least favorite and least used, unless I encountered a specific person that it would do the most damage on.
My thoughts all came crashing down when one of the ravenous squirrels landed on Fame’s shoulder. It snapped its mouth with its extra-long, pointy teeth in his face, and his eyes and mouth flew open, about to scream. I flicked my Wrath sin magic at it to knock it off his shoulder, and it scurried back into the forest.
All the guy's eyes focused on the furry little creature, watching to make sure it left. Once it passed the tree line, their gaze swiveled to me with various looks of horror and questions. I hesitated, putting my tongue in my cheek to prevent me from busting up laughing.
“Oh, and be careful. All the forest creatures here are deformed andwilltear apart your limbs for fun. They really enjoy gorging on intestines.”
Leaving them shaken to their core, I got smug, feeling full of myself since I was used to the little buggers, and walked ahead at a fast pace, not paying attention. I tripped over Abaddon's muddy, brown-haired form, falling flat on my face and taking in a mouth full of dirt. I immediately hopped up, fuming and embarrassed at looking stupid in front of my new mates that I didn’t even want, twirling around to see Abaddon stretch and moan on the ground.
“What the fuck, Lils?! I was having a good dream.” He tried to settle back onto the ground to finish his nap, but I was having none of that.
“So I'm guessing all the princes look alike?” Fame's voice came up behind me.
“Yes. They were all created by my father to help him rule Hell. He couldn’t trust the fallen angels that came down with him, so he got permission from my Pop Pop to make the princes and have them run the circle they were made from. Since he made them, they are loyal to him and anyone of his bloodline.” Abaddon decided at that moment to glare at me but I ignored it as I pressed on. “The main difference is their hair and… personalities. This lazy scrum bum is called Abaddon.”
I crouched down and grabbed a fist full of his hair, yanking hard until his eyes flew wide. He cried out, complaining that I was so rough and mean, the worst little sister in the world, and I let a cruel smirk fall onto my lips as I cut off his rant.
“I need you to wink us to the entrance of Greed's circle.”
His eyes flashed with anger, hating that I was telling him what to do, or really, having him do anything for any reason, but as soon as he saw the rings around my eyes, he nodded as he sneered, “Anything for the queen.”
I let go of him like he’d burned me.
He dropped like a sack of potatoes and yelled at me again as he landed on a rock.
“I wouldn't test me today, Abaddon.” My eyes flashed red like they usually did, but I also felt a darkness to them that had never existed before.
He flinched, then turned and pushed himself up.
“Fine. Fine. Don't get your panties in a twist.” As he rose to his feet, he whispered so low that only I could hear him. “Plus, you still need to passhiscircle. What I wouldn't give to be a soul in that mirror.”
