Tyler stands up and carefully grabs hold of my arms, pulling me to my feet, "Is it alright if I hug you?"
I can feel the heat continue to flush my face but I nod, leaning against him in a comfortable hug. The room had fallen into a blissful silence. And the smell of the stew was slowly overtaken by the earthy scent of his body wash. I rest my head against his chest. I close my eyes as his heart begins to lull me into a sense of peace. At first, there's a soft thud, barely audible, like a gentle tap against the chest. Then, as I focus more intently, I can feel the rhythm building, like the slow, steady drumming of raindrops on a roof. The worry that had twisted my stomach, the guilt that muddled my brain and the anxiety that pounded in my chest melts away completely.
"What happens now?" His voice rumbles lowly through his chest.
"Now?" I hum in thought, moving back to look up at him, "Anything you want. I understand that this is all new to you and we can move at whatever pace you feel comfortable with."
"It's up to me? Are you certain?" He questions. I nod my head, "I am certain."
He pulls me back into the hug, "I like this." His arms rest comfortably against my lower back, he leaned slightly to keep the pressure off of my bum leg. My arms were wrapped as far around his waist as they would go and I began to slowly move my hands up his back, feeling each and every muscle and every bone of his spine. He bends down a bit and I can feel his chin resting on the top of my head, "I never realized that you smelled like vanilla."
"I do?" I sniff my arm. I couldn't smell it and I don't recall having any body wash that had vanilla in it. He chuckles a little bit, "Yeah, you do. I really like vanilla."
Both of our stomachs growl and we both laugh.
"We should probably finish dinner." I say. He moves me back out of the hug and down into my awaiting chair. He moves back over to his side of the table and we continue dinner.

I roll over in bed and kick off the blanket. It's unbelievably hot and sticky in this room. Why don't we have air conditioning?? I couldn't get comfortable enough to sleep, which I guess just meant that I wasn't subjected to my nightmares. I glance over at Tyler, and there he is just snoring away like it was any other day.
How in the hell can you sleep in this weather??? I sit up and shift to lean over him. His body is also covered in sweat like mine, but it doesn't seem to bother him at all. This is so unfair.
You know what? If I can't sleep, then you shouldn't be able to either.
I poke his back.
No reaction.
I frowned a bit and then poked him a little bit more, "Ty?" My voice came out in a hushed whisper. Why am I being quiet? I'm trying to wake him.
This time instead of poking, I placed my hand on his arm, "Ty-" Suddenly my senses were flooded with overwhelming emotions. They were so tangled, I couldn't decipher any of them. He jolts up from his position and hunches over, panting heavily through his nose. His body quakes as he swallows thickly. My hand was still resting on his arm, "Tyler?"
He remains still, his breaths still labored.
"Are you alright?"
He glances at me out of the corner of his eye but doesn't make a move.
I move to sit in front of him, carefully brushing his hair back out of his face. His eyes dart back and forth, like his scanning the surrounding area for something.
"What happened?"
His gaze then shoots up and locks with mine. His pupils are dilated and I'm drawn deeply into the fear that was displayed before me. He shifts forwards and jerks me into a hug, still his body shakes. I patted his back lightly, trying to understand what made him jolt up out of bed. Slowly, he lowers us back down onto the bed, I'm awkwardly perched on top of him.
"Ty?" I try to sit up and move back to my side of the bed but he holds me firmly in place. He rolls over onto his left side, burying his face into the crook of my neck. His hot breath beats against my sweaty skin. One of his hands moves up and begins to tangle his fingers into my hair. I'm firmly pressed against his body. Still, I get nothing but confusing emotions from him.
"Was it a nightmare?" I utter.
I can hear his teeth clatter together as he tries to muster through his uncontrollable shaking, "I-I don't know, I d-don't think I could call it s-simply a nightmare."
"I'm sorry." I wrap my arms around him, doing my best to comfort him. I carefully rub his back, humming the familiar tune of the Lullaby.
Eventually his body quit shaking and I could hear a soft snore make its way out of him. I smile softly and just close my eyes, Even if I can't sleep, at least he can. I have to remember to ask the others about the Lullaby, I never bothered to wonder if we, as the demons, can still use it. Felix would know, but I bother him a lot. Maybe I should ask Mark and Jack?

"Good morning Ethan, how's your leg fairing with all the walking?" Rose asks as he agrees to meet in the house instead of sitting outside.
"I haven't really noticed too much of a difference yet." I rub my eyes before stretching in the chair. Rose nods a bit as he makes his way over and stretches my leg out and looks it over.
"Hey Rose? Do you have a secondary ability??" I think about my conversation with Wade. I had been wondering a lot about where everyone sits in this so-called totem pole.
"A second ability?" Rose glances up at me and then back down to my leg as he begins to rotate it in a circle.
"Yeah, you know some people have a secondary ability, like Tyler's life force scan or whatever it's called." I explain.
He's quiet for a couple of seconds and then he frowns, "Not that I know of. I've always been just electricity."
"What's it like being electricity??" I grunt as he pushes my leg up, bending at the knee.
"I almost said it's no different than being human!" He chuckles, "Actually I'm pretty different from them. My body works more as currents, not exactly a steady heartbeat so to say."
"What do you mean?" I ask.
"There's a constant hum in my head and I don't hear my own heartbeat. Sometimes it's strange to think that I can travel through buildings just by condescending myself down into the electric wires." He tries to explain.
"You could literally travel anywhere within the world with an ability like that." I felt in awe of this ability.
"That may be but I don't like to do it." He clears his throat a little bit, he stretches my leg out again and starts to raise it upwards. "Honestly, I'm afraid that if I stay that way too long, I'll become trapped as a current."
"Did it happen to you?" I asked him, I had never realized that he had this kind of fear; he was always so peppy.
"No, it hasn't happened to me, but it just makes me think of back when we were trapped in those cryogenic tanks..." He sits back on the heels of his feet and looks up at me. "...sometimes I wonder if this is all just a dream."
"Yeah, I hear that. A lot of people think the same thing." I try to comfort him by letting him know that he wasn't the only one with this fear. Rose ruffles his hair, which was usually in a spiked Mohawk. I look him over and realize that he is wearing much nicer clothes than his usual mismatched outfits, "What happened to your clothes?"
"Hm?" He looks down at himself, "What do you mean??? Do I have a stain?"
"No I mean usually you wear more interesting outfits." I answer.
"Oh, um," He bites at his lower lip and then mumbles to himself, "...just trying something new. Does it look good?"
"It's not bad, just not something I thought you would wear. That's more like Felix's style." I reply.
"Felix? Oh, that's not what I was going for." He winces.
"What were you going for?" I ask.
"Well I'm not sure. I was told that my mismatched clothes were childish." He says.
"Childish?? I think they display your personality." I shift in my seat as he begins to pick up the leg exercises again.
"You liked my old clothes?" He asks.
"I love them." I answered with a smile, "Who told you they were childish?"
He mumbles under his breath.
"Huh? I couldn't hear you?"
"Felix did." He raises his voice.
"And you care about what Felix has to say?? I didn't think you'd let that hot air windbag, influence you." I cross my arms.
"Windbag?" He snorts.
"Well he doesn't need to let his bad attitude leech onto everyone else." I explain.
"You're not wrong. But it kind of matters a bit what he thinks." He says.
"Why?"
He looks up at me, and I notice that his face turns a light shade of red. I raise a brow and then it clicks, "Oh!"
"Please don't tell her!" He rushes out.
"I won't, don't worry." I reassure him, "How long?"
"Well I've known her for a long time. We were locked up together." He answers.
"And you changed your look based on his opinion because?" I ask.
"Well he is her father, I doubt anyone would be good enough for her." He replies.
"Oh, but what if she liked the way your old clothes look? And why would she want to date someone who dresses like her father? That would be kinda weird." I couldn't imagine being on a date with someone who dressed like a family member down to the t.
He thinks about my response.
"Does the tank have to do with your fear of being trapped as a current?" I ask him softly.
"Probably," He shrugs, "It's just being stuck in one spot, unable to do anything to stop what's happening right in front of my eyes..." He trails off, his gaze drifting to the floor as he sinks into memories.
"...why don't you talk to her about your feelings?" I ask.
"What if she doesn't share the same feelings and I make it awkward between us?" He counters.
"Well that is a good question, but it would only be awkward if you allow it to be. Besides if you don't let her know, you'd be wondering for the rest of your life. You could end up watching that part just pass you by." I do my best to share my limited wisdom. I doubt my advice was anything to sneeze at.
Again, he is quiet.
"I can go with you for emotional support, but you should probably wear your clothes. Be yourself." I try to comfort him.
"You'd do that?" He asks.
"Of course, that's what friends are for." I grin and it seems to lift his spirits.
"That'd be great!" And we continue my physical therapy lesson. A knock on the front door takes my attention from Rose, "Come in, ow! Easy!"
"Sorry sorry," Rose replies.
"I was told I'd find you here." Hailey walks into the house.
"Hey Hailey." I wave at her, "Can I help you?"
Rose stiffens slightly and tries to ignore the conversation.
"Morning, but no, actually I was looking for Rose." Hailey replies and then I realize that she is holding her wrist.
"What's wrong with your hand?" I ask.
"Amy says that I strained my wrist and told me to find Rose for stretches to do to release the tension." She explains, "I found out that he comes to help you in the early mornings."
"Yeah," I nod.
Rose sets my leg down and then stands, "Alright, I'm done for today. Amy told me that I need to send you to her for a new examination to see if physical therapy has been helping."
"Thank you for letting me know. I guess I will go see her now, don't forget to shut the door behind you guys when you leave." I grab my crutch and then pat his shoulder, giving him a knowing look. He looks almost frightened for half a second as I pass Hailey on the way to the door.
"Oh, okay. Is Guardian still sleeping?" Hailey asks as I pass her.
"No, he got up before I did, to scout the forest." I answer.
"Scout the forest?" She questions.
"Yeah, he wanted to check out some stuff." I shrug, "Probably making sure any defenses hold up."
"We have defenses?" Rose asks.
They really don't tell you guys anything or you don't listen. "Yeah, Felix brought it up in one of our earlier meetings."
"Oh, the meetings." Hailey nods her head a bit, "Yeah, that sounds like something Dad would do. He acts like we are going to be attacked any day now. I'm not sure why, especially since we took care of the man behind the Projects."
"At this point just take it as a characteristic." Rose chuckles lightly at his poor joke and Hailey gives a small smile. I make my way out of my place and down the path. Now I have to figure out where Amy is; always running around checking out everyone's health, you'd think there was a plague breaking out.
"Ethan!"
I jolt at the loud call and turn around to see Jack. He has a giant smile on his face as he flags me down. I wave back at him. He seems very chipper this morning. I wonder what is going on.
I hobble my way towards him.
He meets me halfway.
"What's-?"
"Can you help me with something super important???" He interrupts before I can even finish my sentence.
"Uh, I can try."
He leans over, whispering, "I want to make the wedding a surprise for Mark."
"That's an interesting idea." I reply.
"Here I found this really cool spot." He grabs my arm, "Hang tight!" And with an excited grin, he whisks us away from the village.
We reappear in the forest.
In the heart of the forest clearing, stands a majestic willow tree, its graceful branches cascading like nature's veil, whispering secrets to the wind. Bathed in dappled sunlight, its leaves dance with every gentle breeze, creating a symphony of tranquility. The tree's slender trunk, adorned with moss and lichen, holds steadfast against the passage of time, a silent sentinel amidst the lush greenery of the woodland sanctuary.
"I figured we could make this the spot for the ceremony." He walks forward towards the tree.
"Wow, it's exquisite. How did you find this place?" I hobble forward.
"I didn't, Tyler did. He said he found it while wandering around the forest, checking the places to make defenses." He turns around to face me, hands on his hips. He looks super giddy.
"Alright, what do you want me to do?" I ask.
"I thought about very carefully tying back the branches with some daisy chains to sort of create this curtain where we can get married under the tree." He turns back to the strong willow, gesturing to the branches as he explains his plan.
"Hailey has nimble fingers, she can probably help with the daisies." I suggest.
"Right, because she had been making those knittings." He nods his head.
"...is anyone here a priest??" I raise a brow. He turns back to me, "Do we have to have a real priest??"
"Uh? That is not a question for me." I had absolutely no clue about priests and the whole marrying people thing.
"I've only been to one wedding and it wasn't exactly the greatest thing." I recall my father's second wedding, marrying my bitch of a stepmother. I shudder at the thought of that stupidly tight outfit I had to wear and being shoved forcibly down the aisle to be the ring bearer.
"I think we can make this the greatest wedding ever! Angie had been writing down her ideas and sharing them with me when she had time." His voice softens at the mention of Angie. She had been so kind as to make it her mission to host this wedding and now Jack was continuing it by himself. He filled me in on how a few of them had returned to their grave spot and moved them to be buried here within the outside of the village.
"Is it tonight?" I change course to a lighter topic.
"I...I dunno..." He shifts his position to lean slightly to one side, arms loosely wrapped around his midsection, "It's so strange, we've been together for years now but suddenly the thought of walking down the aisle just makes me so nervous."
I hobble to his side and rest my hand on his shoulder, "It's okay to be nervous."
"I just don't understand why I am." He glances at me.
"Maybe because it's finally happening?" I suggest.
"Maybe." He mumbles.
"It's not like he doesn't love you. This man has been with you for years. You both, literally, survived hell, walking down the aisle should be a piece of cake."
"Cake! Oh," He smacks his forehead, "I don't think we have the ingredients to make cake."
"We can always send someone out to gather some?" I asked, "Besides you didn't specify that the wedding was today."
"You're right, you're right." He nodded his head, "I'd lose my head if it wasn't screwed on."
"Why don't you write down who you want to be in charge of what and go from there. The wedding can always be shifted around to where you need it to be." I look back at the tree. It looked amazing. It made me feel calm. A few birds race by, then chase each other around the tree before resting in a nest that was built up on one of the smaller branches of the mighty willow.
"That's a pretty good idea. Do you want any part in the wedding?"
"I'll do my best to help you put everything together but I honestly don't want to be directly in the wedding." I answer.
"Really?" He asks.
"The last time I was in a wedding, it wasn't a happy time." I admit, "I would prefer to just be a guest."
"No problem." He replies.
"So, another question, you want this to be a surprise for Mark, but you two are joined at the hip. Isn't he going to get a little suspicious if you keep wandering off??" I look back at him. He looks at me and he then furrows his brow, he takes a small breath like he is about to speak but then stops briefly. He rubs his chin and then his temples, "You're right again. What am I supposed to do?? The more we talk about it, the more it seems like it just keeps getting more complicated."
"Well either you can put someone else in charge or find a way to get Mark out of the village and go do, I dunno, anything." I suggest.
"Which do you think would be easier?" He asks.
I shrug my shoulders, "I dunno, it's your wedding. Maybe the question you should be asking is can you handle someone else putting together the wedding for you?"
He makes another face as he seems to be thinking about my question long and hard. I wander over to the tree and pat the trunk. It was solid. How long have you been here? What all have you seen? What have you lived through?
I circle around the trunk taking in the bark. Now you are going to host a coming together of two souls. Two broken souls to become one whole. I look back at Jack as he paces back and forth, muttering quietly to himself.
His hair had gotten longer over the few weeks. What used to be a short haircut was now hair down to the edge of his jawbone, just long enough to put in a very small ponytail. He had shaved off the underside of his hair, leaving the top long. He had grown out a bit of his facial hair too. He was wearing a short sleeve shirt that was a light red color like it had dried in the sun too long. His black shorts revealed his pale, slightly hairy legs. I wonder what a sun tanned Irishman looks like. I lean against the tree and just watch as he paces one way and then turns back the other direction.
"Hey Jack?"
He stops his pacing and turns back to me, "Yeah?"
"Can we as demons use the Lullaby?" I ask.
"If we can use the Lullaby?" He repeats and I shake my head yes.
"I don't know, I've never tried. I think we just assumed that we couldn't use it anymore. Why do you ask?" He wanders over to join me under the tree.
"I just recall Felix humming the tune in times of stress, it's pretty relaxing. And I used it last night to soothe Tyler." I explain.
"Hm, maybe we can use it." He shrugs a bit. "I never really put too much thought into it."
"Still got a lot to learn about ourselves." I rub my arm, glad for the shade as the sun was beginning to rise higher and higher in the sky, "I wonder just how hot this summer is going to be."
"Well we aren't far from the mountain, so maybe not too bad? I think the thing that'll be really hard to navigate is the humidity." He chimes in and then lets out a heavy sigh, "I think I really want to be in control of planning everything. Do you think Tyler would be able to help convince Mark to leave with him?"
"Maybe." I reply.
"What is he even doing now? The defenses have already been checked and they just got back from a supply run." He said.
"Who knows." I looked up at the branches, watching the wind blow the leaves just slightly enough to make the filtered sunlight look so elegant, "Wade said that we kind of made his purpose obsolete."
"Oh." The tone in Jack's voice makes me think that, he, too, didn't realize that our freedom would have such an impact on one of his closest friends.
"Don't be too upset, Tyler said that he is fine with it. Anyway, I didn't mean to take us off track, now that you know that you want to plan the wedding, when shall we get started??"
"Probably as soon as possible." He smiles warmly, "Let's head back and start gathering help."
"I'll find Hailey and discuss it with her." I say as Jack grabs my arm and teleports us back to the village.