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Lance

I woke up to a certain devil noisily slurping coffee from across the room, seeming to make as much noise as he possibly could. Making a face at me when I lifted my head from my pillow to glare at him, Keith made a point of continuing his obnoxious slurping.

"What time is it?" I mumbled. I felt something on my back twitch and realized that my wings had come loose sometime in the night. They lay against my back comfortably as I rested on my stomach.

"6:30," Keith replied smugly, slurping again. I guessed it was espresso.

Groaning, I flopped back down onto my pillow. "It's too early for this shit, devil!" My voice was muffled.

"You hogged the bathroom last night," he commented as if that made a difference.

I didn't reply. Why did Keith have to wake up so early? Was it a devil thing? Did he just naturally wake up unnecessarily early, or was he doing it to piss me off? I'd never know.

Yawning loudly, I slouched out of bed. My wings trailed behind me as I slumped to the bathroom to freshen up and Keith grunted when I passed by the little table he sat at. "Put on a shirt, no one wants to see your try-hard excuses for abs.

"Oh, yeah?" I replied absently, eyeing his bare chest. Like he had abs. His posture was so terrible, you'd never be able to tell.

The brightness of the cleanly bathroom hurt my early eyes, but I forced myself to wake up little by little, eventually gathering the strength to retract my wings and splash some cold water on my face.

"It's gonna be upper-sixties today, what do you want to wear?" I called to Keith, thinking to myself about what I could wear.

"I get to choose now?" he called back, and I half-smiled. The pink unicorn pajamas had been a nice touch.

"You want me to pick for you again?" I asked, materializing high-waisted shorts and a long-sleeved bodysuit. I dressed quickly, pulling on high boots as well. Might as well be stylish. On second thought, maybe I should just go full feminine. It wouldn't hurt, and Keith definitely wasn't allowed to judge me.

I felt a little giddy at the idea... I liked having long hair and a curvy figure, but it could look a little odd if I did it wrong and it took a lot of Energy. Oh well. That's what coffee's for.

Focusing on my physical form, I gently tugged forward a more feminine body structure- curving my hips, letting in my waist, growing longer and longer hair until it fell down my back past my shoulders blades. Feeling a bit faint, I leaned against the cool bathroom counter, sighing in relief as everything fell into place. Smiling at myself, I nodded once. Perfect.

Stepping out of the bathroom, I winced as Keith glanced up at me then did a double-take, scowling. "What the fuck? Halohead?"

"Still me," I answered, trying my best to act normal as I poured myself a cup of coffee from the kettle that room service had brought. My hair fell down like a curtain, blocking Keith's view of my face as I leaned over the table, biting my lip nervously.

"What did you do?" the devil asked when I straightened, bringing the steaming coffee to my lips.

"I'm Lance's twin sister, Mance," I replied airily, and his horns sprouted from his forehead. I squinted. That had to be painful.

"No, seriously. How did you do that?"

"Can't you?"

Keith stood, revealing the fact that he actually did have abs. Nice ones too. The tip of his tail flicked in annoyance at my passiveness.

He was still wearing the pajamas, and he looked absolutely hilarious. I sipped my coffee nonchalantly as Keith stepped forward until we were practically chest to chest, eyes narrowed as he scrutinized my face.

"You'd be hot if you weren't such an ass."

In an instant, Keith had a face full of ice cold coffee, dripping off his chin and running down the rivets of his chest. He yelled, jumping back in surprise. "What the fuck?!"

I paused, then flipped my hair saucily over my shoulder, letting the empty coffee mug dangle from my fingers limply. "I'm always hot."

"Why's is so cold?" Keith sputtered, his tail lashing angrily. I noticed that the whites of his eyes were black. Ooh, that probably wasn't a good thing. I had intentionally cooled down the coffee before I splashed it on him, but maybe I should've just left it at luke-warm.

"Maybe it'll cool down your hotheadedness," I replied, pouring myself another cup of coffee.

Keith stomped over to the bathroom, fuming. "I'm taking a shower!" He growled, slamming the door. I smiled to myself. Typical devil.

...

"Where are we going, anyway?"

Keith had settled down a bit since we left the hotel, which I was grateful for. Maybe it was the rare, beautiful weather or the fact that, out of my own guilt, I actually had let him chose his own outfit, but either way, he didn't seem to mad at me anymore.

In fact, Keith looked comfortable, all gussied up in his leather jacket and black jeans. He'd seemed to have gotten used to my feminine form now, as he hadn't mentioned it again, but maybe it was just because he was afraid of getting splashed with coffee again.

"We're going to a bus stop," I replied, stopping to wait at a crosswalk.

"And then where?" Keith asked. His hands were shoved deep in his pockets as he strolled casually across the street with me. His hair was still damp from the shower and it was so messy that I felt like making him stop so I could fix it.

"Stop number one on your list," I told him. "But not if you keep walking so slow- we'll miss the bus."

"What time does it arrive?"

I looked at my watch to check the time. 7:30. Fuck.

Grabbing Keith's arm, I launched into a sprint, eyes set as Keith started protesting. "What is it?!" He shouted, stumbling along behind me as I kept a firm hold on his wrist.

"The bus is going to leave without us!"

We careened down the street, apologizing in a rush to startled onlookers who jumped out of our way, dodging trashcans and tourists and small children like a fucking obstacle course. Keith sped up to run next to me and I let go of his arm, looking over at him for a mere millisecond.

And he was laughing. Keith's face was alight with excitement, and he looked over at me too, grinning like a maniac. "We should do this more often!" He laughed, and I couldn't help but laugh back too.

It wasn't often that he'd smile like that at me. We turned onto a side street and I shrieked, pointing at the small blue bus that was beginning to pull off of the sidewalk, urging my legs to run faster as Keith and I barreled down the street.

"Wait!" I called helplessly at the bus, waving my arms like I was crazy, Keith's loping strides carrying him ahead of me. "Stop!"

Just as I thought the bus hadn't seen us, it halted to a stop, brake lights flaring in my early eyes, and I let out a breathless laugh.

"Yes," Keith hissed through his teeth quietly, slowing to a jog as we caught up to where the bus had stopped.

As the bus doors opened, a disgruntled drive gave us the stink eye before ushering us inside, Keith going in as I stopped to pay. My breath still came fast and hard and my chest hurt from being jostled so much without proper support and my knees were shaking a little and my ankles hurt from running in heeled boots, BUT we had caught the bus, and that was all that mattered.

It was only when I turned to go sit down when I realized just how crowded it was. The bus was packed. I slipped between those who clung to the overhead handles and looked for Keith, lurching forward as the bus jolted into motion. I stumbled as I made my way towards the back of the bus and found Keith, casually holding onto a handle hanging from the ceiling.

He regarded me calmly, then pointed to the handle beside his. I reached for it thankfully, steadying myself as I caught my breath. I noticed that he wasn't the least bit out of breath, or at least he'd recovered unnaturally fast from our sprint.

"Are you a freak athlete or something?" I asked skeptically through my heaving. The people around me pushed against my back and sides, blocking Keith from my view. He didn't reply.

Once I'd regained my breath, I realized how much of a toll the run had taken on me. I was already drained from producing clothes, changing my form, producing money and such just from the past hour, and now the physical activity had drained my Energy. My legs wobbled and I looked around frantically for an open seat. Zero, zip, zilch, nada, nothing.

I fell forward through the crowd and my hands searched for a leather jacket. He'd kill me for this.

Keith let out a sharp exhale as I hit him, my hands clutching his shoulders. My shoulders shook. He stumbled, off-balance as he searched for purchase, scrambling for another hand-hold. He found an empty handle and gripped it, hands suspended as he supported my weight leaning against him.

"What the fuck, Halohead?" He muttered. With the transition, I'd shrunk a few inches, and even with the boots, I was shorter than Keith. It felt odd. Around us, people shifted and crowded in closer as more people came onto the bus. Someone pressed against my back, pinning me firmly to Keith's chest.

"I'm sorry," I whispered to him, "It's my fault."

He didn't reply and I was afraid to meet his eyes.

"I just need to rest for a few minutes. I'm sorry." My body was flush against his, and I could feel his strength and anger through his clothes.

"First the coffee, and now this?" Keith grunted. He sounded properly pissed. "I'm really not enjoying a female angel anymore. This is bullshit," he complained quietly.

"I know," I said apologetically.

"You should get a refund," he muttered. I wanted to ask what he meant, but my body felt like lead. I gripped his shoulders harder. I barely had the strength to stay upright. It was the best I could do to keep on my feet. "For your Energy, I mean. Seems like you've got a bit of a shit amount if I'm being honest. If it runs out this fast?"

I wanted to smile.

My ear was against his chest and I noticed with a reeling surge of discomfort that he didn't have a heartbeat. Breathing shallowly, I kept my eyes closed.

Just keep conscious.

After a good ten minutes with stops every few minutes to let on and let out passengers, I regained motion. Shifting, I relaxed my hands from his jacket, letting the material slid from my fists until I was just holding on for balance.

"You alright, now? You're heavy."

I looked down, pushing off Keith and reaching up for a handle above me. My cheeks burned with embarrassment. Why did I push myself like this? Normal angels could regulate their Energy use. Why couldn't I? What was wrong with me?

I felt Keith's eyes on me, so I let my hair fall over my face, blocking him out as I studied my shoes intently. Mother, help me.

Another five minutes and the bus had significantly lightened its load. When it stopped again, I let go of the handle and made my way to the front of the bus. I heard Keith follow me.

7:45 on the dot as we stepped off the bus and onto the sidewalk. I surveyed our surroundings, checking in with my memory to make sure we were in the right place.

We stood on a wide street with little shops on either side of it, pastel and sweet. To our left, the street curved up and away towards residential. To our right, it led to a parking lot scattered with cars. And beyond that, a bay. A harbor. Chock-full of sailboats and speedboats and cruisers. Their sleek sides and heaps of sails made my heart leap.

I inhaled deeply and closed my eyes. Salty air caressed my face and cleared my sinuses. I could practically feel the water against my skin and I wanted nothing more than to run to the harbor and jump into the ocean.

However, we weren't here for me. We were here for my devil. I opened my eyes and set them to the store across the street. It was painted a light pink with big windows in front, showcasing floral-patterned shirts, fake leis, and potted orchids.

A sign settled neatly across the top, reading in pretty, vintage writing, "Allura's Arboretum and Floristry". Stop number one.

...

Ahahaha I updated again hehe. I just...... wanted to see what you guys thought about this chapter ;) so much happened! I'm surprised you guys didn't guess what was in Seattle! Could it be... a modest little flower shop run by a beautiful queen? Hmm I guess we'll find out ;))

Also, did you like my little moment for them on the bus? I'm all for cliches. And what about fem!lance? I wanted to incorporate her somehow.

Uhh so yeah. I hope you liked this. I'm not sure if I've already said this on this fic, but it's worth saying again- come to wattcon!! I'm going and I want to meet you! Let me know if you do! I'll like... make a shirt that says "Monsieur" on it and hug all of you.

Anyways!

Qotd: Favorite ship and/or favorite flower?

Love you <33