Gone was the demon that brought forth an angel

Something like a dark magic struck your chest and shook you awake like lightning being made in a storm cloud, rippling through your muscles in a bright agony that had you screaming yourself awake.

It was a Revenge Counter, you knew it, Meliodas had made the attack on you to wake you sharply from her coma in his fleeting moment.

As your eyes snapped open, glowing the brightest white light, you caught sight of all of the commandments on what was left of the battlefield. At the centre.. Meliodas, missing an arm, covered in blood, kneeling in soon defeat of his older brother, Estarossa.

"(Y/n)" he whispered, as blood as rich as the finest wine ran from his lips.

"To be honest, Meliodas" Estarossa hummed as you watched helplessly, "I wish more than anything it didn't have to come to this, this will hurt me so much more than it will you.."

His metal boot crushed down as the sin of wrath was pushed onto his back, a sharp cry of pain leaving his trust.

"(Y/n)" Meliodas whispered again, and his eyes drifted slowly over to you, "my love for you runs the deepest—HRGH!" He yelled in mind splitting pain as 7 demon blades were magically pushed through his heart by Estarossa.

You screamed and the ground cracked beneath them, sand exploding out from the fissure and the violently loud cry of the Wind Walker silenced the demons and holy knights alike. Over the hill, one of the large trees coiled and cracked, splitting open as another beast configuration emerged from the ground, the Jungle Crawler.

Both of them were as tall as two giants, with long, strong necks and contrasting light and dark feather-fur. They erupted up through the earth like messengers of death, instantly laying waste to the landscape around them in fury of their master's sorrow. Throwing yourself against whatever barrier you had been placed in, it shattered around you in sparkling purple shards, disappearing as they smashed into the dirt. Your bare feet hit the earth, and you ran over to Meliodas' still body, a horrifying set of twisted black blades cutting cavity's through his chest. Destroying all of his 7 hearts.

You collapsed at his side, crying your eyes out as your hands pressed against his face and pinned your sweaty forehead against his, "AHHHHHHHH!" You screamed, in agony and loss, as the great, colossal beasts tore at the retreating commandments as they made their escape over the scorched earth.

Ban collapsed onto his knees, watching you as his hands fell limp at his sides, "Cap'n..."

It was like your own heart had been ripped out of your chest, and crushed under the weight of a thousand fallings suns. There was nothing you could do...

And from the ruins of the battle, as the reformed Holy Knights emerged from the wreckages helping civilians who had become trapped under the wrath of the beast configurations, a young man stepped forward. "Melio--.... dad.." Arthur stood still, and his sword dropped onto the grass.

(About than 16 years ago)

Meliodas sat next to your feet, his arms around your lower stomach, swollen from the mysterious baby inside that he had his head pressed up next to, listening to its strange heart beat. He hummed softly, his eyebrows lacing together 

"Explain this to me again... that's not my son? And he's not your baby."

You stroked Meliodas' fluffy blonde hair and nodded, "Its difficult for demons to understand, we don't hatch from crypts like you do" You joked, and Meliodas half-smiled for a moment, then it faded away. You bit your lip and ran your fingers through his hair, "Our high deity, as you know, is the only one capable of creating new angels. When she creates a new angel, she chooses a carrier who will be a protector of that angel until they reach 100, at which they can ascend to heaven to fight for her."

Meliodas placed his hand on your belly, and you felt a little bit of pain as something moved away from his hand and pressed on your bladder. You'll have to get used to his energy little warrior, you thought quietly to the baby as your hand came to rest on top of Meliodas'.

"I imagine she's punishing me for descending to earth. But this is her angel.. she will choose when it is born, and when it is the end of my duty to care for it.." You said, and Meliodas hugged your stomach, his arms falling around your back with his cheek pressed against the tiny heart beat.

"So, he's not my son" His emerald eyes seemed to almost crystallise with the sadness in them, yet no tears ever even welled on the sin's face.

You leaned forward and gently pulled his face up towards you with your delicate fingers, leaning down to press a soft kiss against his lips, "he doesn't have to know that.. 100 years is a long time.. you never know, he might like having you for a daddy.. I know I did." 

You couldn't help it, you broke out in giggles because of the shock that appeared on his face the second you finished talking, like you'd just slapped him across the cheek.

Meliodas soon laughed, "sate sate sate, my love, what a wicked way with words you have" He chuckled, standing up and patting you gently on the head as he looked around at your little house on the cliffside, just outside of the town Meliodas was working in as a soldier. "Perhaps I'm a bad influence on you" The side of his eye began to flicker with black for a moment, emanating his demon energy for you to snicker at.

"But since I have to raise him.. I guess he'll call me mum, and you dad.." Meliodas sat down next to you on the log you had both situated yourself beside, looking out across the ocean from the meadow cliff-top. "I guess he won't know any better, until he's older.."

(1 month after Meliodas' "death")

"(Y/n)... you don't really need to tell me this story again" Arthur scratched the back of his neck, "I kind of already knew."

You blinked a few times, confused as you set the large jug of ale onto the table the young King was sitting at, "how could you possibly know about that? About where you came from?"

"You know when you had Merlin alter my memories so I didn't remember you or Meliodas? When you gave me to the King to raise as his own?" You felt a little guilty at the memory, having forgone your duty in spite of the high deity's wishes for Arthur, but you would not let him become a slave to her divine rule. You nodded, and Arthur grabbed your hand, "she left me with the truth, that you're not related to me, you only had duty to care for me until that high goddess wanted me back...otherwise what reason would I have to want you in my bed? It would've been taboo.." Arthur looked up at you with those enchanting purple eyes, "I wouldn't sully your name like that, you're the most important person in my life."

"Arthur! I raised you!" You flushed red like the blood peaches Hawk was carrying around the Boar Hat's inn floor on a wooden tray on its back.

Arthur snickered and kissed your empty ring finger, "call it a long-time crush on my babysitter then." He tried to pull you towards him, but just as he did you heard Ban's slurring voice yelling for you from the kitchen. 

"Mistresss! Get over here! Something's up with this oven its turning the Hawk rinds black!"

"HAWK RINDS!?" The pig squealed in fright, the peaches dropping and rolling across the slanted floor as you raised yourself up in your Boar Hat waitress uniform, and patted the pig's head quickly as you passed.

"Pork rinds Hawk, don't worry, Ban won't cook you on my watch"

"I'll feel safe when that ruffian isn't in control of a flaming metal cook pot!!" The pig screamed back as you pulled up your single black tight and pushed through the wooden door into the inn's little kitchen, where your senses were instantly flooded with the smell of mouth-watering roasts and vegetables all sizzling and frying around the hotplates.

You spotted Ban with an uncomfortable look on his face as he looked over a plate of charred bits of meat, his back bent forward in disappointment.

"Ban, what's wrong?" You patted his shoulder lightly and he stuck his tongue out towards the plate before throwing it across the room as it smashed out the window.

"Overcooked my last bit of pork" He grumbled and you shook your head, moving past him to stir the broth before you ducked back out into the main part of the inn to pour more drinks.

Some time later when the crowds had slowed to a dull roar, and the taps had been turned down to only a few, you made your way upstairs, pulling loose the pink ribbon around your neck. You climbed into the large bed, instantly relaxing under the soft blankets, and exhaling slowly as your ribcage gently expanded and tightened the bandages around your chest and back.

Your nose came to brush against the sleeping body of Meliodas, who you had healed as much as you could in the past month, even managing to restore all 7 of his heart purely through concentrated transition of energy.

The healing you had done for Meliodas had severely stunted your own regeneration, so even after a whole month of healing, your wings had not grown back yet.

"Meliodas..." You whispered, your eyelashes, long and dark like a black cloak over your eyes, fell as you closed your vision off from the world. "I can't bear the thought of living in a world without you".

Your hand graced gently over the large scars where the daggers had long since been removed from, your fingertips glowing with a soft white light as you made your way down his arm to the tail-eating dragon tattoo on his upper arm.

"Everyone is waiting for you Melio" You nuzzled your face between his cheek and the pillow beneath both of your heads, "but I understand you need some time in there, before you can restart your heart." You tilted up your chin and pressed your lips to the corner of his jaw, "so sleep well my love, and come back to me when you're ready."

(About 14 years ago...)

With your wings bright and shimmering as white feathers reached up to touch the sky, you lay on your stomach with a book in your hand, enjoying the warm summer breeze as it blew over from the town towards the sea.

You could hear the hard smacks of the wooden swords a certain pair were smacking at each other as they play-fought on the little clearing beside the house. 

Meliodas and Arthur had been inseparable since the night the stars came down and brought Arthur into the world in your care, and since he had taught him many an unfortunate habit, including stealing ingredients from my pantry so that they could lay their traps with biscuits and sweets and hope to catch themselves a peppermint rabbit, even after you told both of them they didn't even exist.

But as you sat up a little on your elbows, looking over the moving golden grass to a boy and and knight sparring like it was all they had ever wanted to do in their lives, you couldn't help but grin from ear to ear. "Oh goddess, you sure have funny ways of expressing how much you hate me for being better than you" You closed your book gently, "you gave me a life I could only wish for, and if you intend to take it from me... I pity the angels you send down to try to stop me."

Oh I'm so hopeless, sorry this wasn't a very good chapter but I'm writing it at midnight so you guys have something to read since I haven't updated in what's felt like FOREVER! But no need to worry, I'll never stop writing these stories even if the chapters have a bit of a time delay between them! After all, life away from wattpad is moving so fast its a little hard to make the time sometimes.

But anyway, big news, we just hit 1 MILLION reads on this story!! So thank you very much! 

I thought I'd use this chapter to explain a bit about some things still unclear for a few readers; particularly in the Arthur and Meliodas relationship with (Y/n) department. I want to tell readers that its perfectly fine to ship yourself with Arthur in this story, and I hope this chapter cleared up any related/not-related confusion.