“Okay, let’s go hunting,” Lirin says and lifts my hand to his lips, where he can kiss my knuckles. “Show us your home, my love.”
***
Hell is not what they expected. It smells nice. No one is screaming. Canto mutters under his breath, and I have tostruggle to ignore his comments long enough to greet the demon who is welcoming us.
“Welcome, Death’s Daughter, we have been waiting for you to return to us,” a demon says. “Return home.”
Brio puts an arm around my back and urges me forward. We walk through the demons gathered, who are whispering.
“Death, Healer, Sirens, Leviathan.”
It’s like a chant, but one of awe.
They like us. They fear us.
But more importantly, they welcome us.
Still, it’s not home.
They take me to my sire’s castle and give it to me. I have a castle. In Hell. It’s beautiful. We spend a month exploring every inch of it.
“What do you think?” Lirin asks one night when I’m getting restless.
“I think this is a nice holiday home.”
Leaf lifts my hand and presses a kiss to my palm. “Where is your heart, Strega?”
I bite my bottom lip and hesitate before I tell him.
***
The Black Death Oceans and the hundred foot waves call to me. I know they shouldn’t, but they do. I listen to them across the worlds and finally open the door there.
I have tried to resist them. I have fought hard not to want to go back. But that world, that space between the worlds. It’s ours.
It’s always going to be ours.
Ronit walks into the room and stays quiet as he approaches. He stands shoulder to shoulder with me, staring into the cresting waves and inky black depths. I can picture it in my head and hear it, but I want to go there. I need to.
“What are you doing, Strega?”
I shrug, not wanting to tell him the truth.
“Why there?” he asks softly.
I hesitate for a long moment. “It feels like-”
“Home?” we both say at the same time.
He pulls me into his arms and kisses my forehead.
“Okay, let’s see if it fits. Let’s see if we can find somewhere that feels safe.”
The others come, drawn by the call of the waves. I can feel the excitement tremble through the bonds.
We dive in and fall into those waves, disappearing under the surface.
Everywhere can be my home, but this place is ours.
