"So..." My dad starts.

I raise my eyes and glare at him so hard the blood rushes from his face. "What?"

"How is... everything?"

This morning when I woke up on my bedroom floor with no recollection of how I got there, the first thing I felt was excitement and pure joy. And then immediately after that, betrayal beyond anything I've ever experienced. I can feel it right where my heart used to beat.

I ignore him and push my food off of the table, watching unremorsefully as the plate chips and the food seeps into the cracks of our hardwood floor.

"Connie, we're sorry!" My mom explodes and throws her own fork down. "We didn't think telling you in advance would be helpful! We thought you might run and we didn't want you to know–,"

"You didn't want me to know I was a monster?"

The M-word hangs heavy in their faces. I try not to use it, but isn't that what I am if I can't even be near my human boyfriend?

"Y-you're not a monster, Connie. You're a blessing," My dad squeaks.

I shoot up from the table with supernatural speed. "Oh. Oh really? I'm a blessing? That's great," I hop onto the table effortlessly (which shocks me too but now I'm on a roll) and sneer at them. "I'm a blessing, not a monster, right?" My arms press firmly into my sides and swoop outwards to meet above my head. Summoning my wings is not hard, then again I haven't actually used them yet. They're larger than I thought they would be and the webbing is a royal purple instead of the average black or red I was taught so much about. "What about my 40 inch tail?" It whips to the side and shatters a glass on impact. "What about my teeth and claws and eyes, huh?" I snarl to show the sharpness of my incisors, lash out with my claws and trap them with my eyes. I'm wild, I know I'm acting wild but I can't help it. I'm so furious and exhausted and energized I can't think straight.

"They're beautiful," My mom chokes up but it only serves to piss me the hell off.

"If I'm beautiful then why? Why can't..." The fury burns out as quickly as it flared and I hop down to lean against the doorframe. I don't want them to see how badly they hurt me, so I stare out into the living room.

"Go to him."

I whip around. "What did you say?"

My parents exchange a look and frown. "We didn't say anything, Connie."

"Are you hungry, champ? We could get you a sacrifice," He offers weakly.

"Doug!"

I cross my arms in annoyance. "Dad, I don't need a sacrifice. I feed off of the sexual energy of people so unless you and mom wanna go bang in the other room (and I'd really prefer if you didn't), there's not anything you can feed my demon half that won't make me want to rip you guys in half for lying to me."

'Rip them in half? Geez, a little harsh, Ni.'

You know who else calls me Ni?

I drop my arms and groan. "Why can't we even talk anymore? What do they think I'm going to do over text?! Send him ghost emojis?!"

"Humans can get addicted to succubi. He won't want to do anything but have sex until you've drained him dry. Literally." My mom daintily picks up her fork again and pops a carrot in as if she didn't just make a sex pun.

I throw my hands up in shocked laughter. "Mom, we were like that before all of this happened! It's not like anything has really changed!"

"Except you have all the power in the world on the tips of your fingers and with every kiss you could kill him if you don't have control."

I couldn't. I wouldn't ever so much as dream of hurting him. Even with that delicious body, those eyes that cast spells in and of themselves... that raw sexual power pouring off of him while he fucks me against any surface we can find.

My parents both turn away and cover their eyes in a panic. "Connie, get ahold of yourself!"

I snap back into it and realize my skin feels cool. Oh. It's probably because I am now wearing very scanty, very not linner appropriate attire. "Oh wow... I can shapeshift?"

"Shapeshift back! We're your parents so we're mostly immune but I don't want to have to go to more therapy about this!"

"Go to him."

That voice is starting to get on yesterday's nerves too. Why the hell wont it shut up? Go to who? Jesus? I almost laugh.

I can smell it in the air. I can taste it too and my mouth waters for too long before I'm so disgusted I turn tail and run.

"Connie wait!"

I was aroused by my own parents being... Gross, gross, gross! I charge out the front door and breathe fresh air for the first time in too long. Our street is rather quiet, but I can still hear cars driving by in the distance and dogs barking down the street as they play with children. It smells like summer, and the undertones of cool in the air are genuinely the best thing in the world to me right now.

I wonder...

"Connie, don't go see Steven! You can't!"

What?

Oh...

Oh. "That was criminally stupid, Dad." I try to plant my feet and get my wings to flap. "Come on. Levitato! Fly! Uh... up! Go up!" I jump with the last word and the ground falls from under my feet way too quickly. I'm easily fifty feet in the air now and I panic so hard they lose traction and I begin to free fall. "No! I can't fall!" They shoot to the sides and I'm now steady. "Hm..."

I need to go see Steven, and I need my wings to work with me dammit. My parents are screaming from the ground but all I can focus on is that feeling, and then that voice.

"Go to him."

"Okay."

I know which way his house is even from up high, it's way down over by Dewey Beach tucked away in an alcove. It's huge, like almost mansion huge, but Steven likes to spend time outside in his greenhouse and that's where I'm headed. I feel free, powerful, I feel like me and it makes me realize I've never felt like me before now.

I wonder what humans see when I fly above, if they see a plane or a bird or balloon. I wonder what the mist hides me as.

It takes me a split second to realize I'm going too fast if I want to not end up a fly on a windshield with my ass through my skull. "Oh, whoa, whoa, whoa I don't know how to stop!"

It doesn't matter. As I pass the start of the beach and everything comes into view, my heart sinks.

Steven's house is gone.