Diablos stops talking, staring at the shadows that are writhing. “You are not funny, Azriel.”
Annileo, Sorrow, Isla, Asterius, Wraith, and Raz step out of the shadows. I can feel them, all that potent intensity. They are cautious, but Isla sees Becky and lets out a little scream. The two embrace happily, then Isla turns to me and hugs me hard.
“So glad to see you again. Anni said you were okay, but I’m glad to see you made it and got them back!” she says to me.
“Go play, Raz, but remember what I told you. If you are good tonight, you get Isla’s ass. But if you fuck up, Asterius gets yours.”
Isla chokes, whipping around to glare at Sorrow. “Are you right?”
“I’m half left, too,” he says gleefully.
“I swear, some days I contemplate murder for at least nine hours,” Isla mutters.
Becky grips my wrist. “He’ll break him in half.”
“It would be hilarious to watch,” I say in amusement. “Alas, I don’t have eyes.”
“You’re not watching anyone but us,” Canto growls from right behind me. I lean back into him.
“Right, barbecue. How do we do it?” Diablos claps his hands.
Hartley sighs. “Becky, Isla, want to give me a hand? If we want to eat, Di is not allowed near the food.”
“We’ll go hunt the meat!” Leaf says helpfully.
“You can’t hunt anything, you’re too loud,” Raz snarls and snaps his wings out, deliberately shoving his feathers into Asterius’ mouth by the sounds of choking and laughter.
Leaf growls at the angel, who growls back. There’s a moment of pause and peace. Then the two collide and start rolling around on the ground.
“Sigh. Are you sure you want to keep him?” Ronit mutters.
I slap him on his very hard chest. “Yes.”
“Fine.”
“No need to hunt things,” Hartley shouts. “We went to the supermarket.”
“Ugh, boring,” Leaf whines.
“Ooh, look, a meal,” Raz says, and I listen as he approaches Kit. The flashes of green in my mind show him gathering his power.
Raz leaps, and Kit explodes with tentacles. The angel back wings, but Kit meows, and an army of mini-Kit’s come racing out of the house.
Some of them breathe fire.
“Ex-fucking-plain,” Ronit snaps. “Kit, did you bring your offspring here?”
The female Earth cat meows and the little family gathers together.
“I’m a grandpa!” Leaf says and sits down on the ground to coo at the babies.
“My future army,” Diablos says happily.
“They are not your army!” Becky snaps.
The meat never does get cooked, we order pizza later and eat and drink late into the night. At the end of the evening, we go our separate ways.
We go home.
