The alley we ducked into was thick with the static hum of leftover magic. The streetlight above flickered, casting strange, shifting shadows that didn’t quite match the bodies casting them. I leaned against the rough brick wall, catching my breath. Hugging a bus bench takes a lot out of you, okay?

  Across from me, Euryale stood with her arms crossed, her golden eyes sharp, posture still coiled with the tension of the fight. She looked like she was just waiting for the next round to start. Lily, on the other hand, was stretching like a smug cat—rolling out her shoulders, rotating her hips, looking entirely too pleased with herself. Elly remained near the alley’s mouth, one foot braced against the wall, her head on a swivel. Her posture wasn’t tense, just… ready.

  And then there were the gym bros.

  The three of them stood in a loose semi-circle around Lily, each one looking like they’d been carved from Greek marble and dipped in protein powder. They were statuesque—chiseled jaws, big arms, tight track pants. All abs and devotion. Their eyes were vacant, not like zombies, but like people lost in a beautiful dream they didn’t want to wake up from. A low, almost imperceptible thrumming came off them, like they were caught in Lily’s orbit.

  She gave them a slow once-over, sipping from their attention like it was a smoothie. “Well,” she purred, “I was worried about finding a meal after that mess but look at this. Dinner delivered.”

  I groaned, dragging a hand down my face. “Lily, come on.”

  She turned toward me, lips curling into a smirk. “Oh, lighten up, Danny. It’s not like I dragged them into this. They came willingly—straight from the squat rack to my shadow.” She winked. “Can’t help being irresistible.”

  Euryale was all business. “Pick one. I’ll take the other two.”

  Lily made a dramatic noise, tossing her hair over one shoulder. “Ugh, so practical. Can’t I just enjoy the moment? Let them breathe a little? Swirl the glass, appreciate the notes?”

  “No,” Euryale said, her voice flat and absolute. “We’re not here to play with our food.”

  I threw my hands in the air. “Yeah, this is real fun. Great bonding moment.”

  Elly, still hovering just a few feet away, gave me a little nudge in the ribs. “We should get going.”

  I latched onto that like a lifeline. “Yes. Yes, let’s do that.”

  Lily made a sound like a kicked diva, but Euryale was already stepping toward one of the gym bros, her expression neutral. She raised two fingers beneath his chin, guiding his face up like a puppeteer pulling on strings. The moment they touched, his entire body went lax, his posture melting like someone had turned off all the noise in his head. He looked… content.

  I turned away, a sour taste creeping into my mouth. “You know, you could just eat a steak or something, right?”

  Lily snorted, twisting a lock of hair around her finger. “That’s adorable, Danny. Really. You think we run on protein and potatoes.”

  She looked at me then, and something flickered behind her smirk—an ancient hunger, unapologetic and ever-burning. “You’re jealous.”

  I gawked. “I am not—”

  She gave me that look—the one that said she’d already won the argument, even if I never said another word.

  I didn’t want to be around for this.

  Euryale fell into step beside me as I started walking toward the alley’s exit, her gait smooth, deliberate. She didn’t look at me, but I felt her eyes studying me all the same. “You’re actually uncomfortable,” she said, and there was no judgment in her tone. Just observation.

  I let out a low snort. “Gee, what gave it away? My whole face, or the part where I almost choked on my own tongue?”

  She didn’t smile. Maybe didn’t even want to.

  “You think of it as seduction,” she said.

  I turned to look at her. “It is seduction. That’s literally what it is. And watching it unfold is like watching a spider dress up for dinner.”

  “It isn’t seduction,” she replied quietly. “It’s survival.”

  This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

  Her voice held something I couldn’t name—old pain, maybe. Or shame she’d long since buried under centuries of purpose.

  Before I could reply, Elly stepped in again, catching my elbow. “Come on,” she said. “We’re leaving.”

  I didn’t need to be told twice. With one last grimace at the scene behind us, I let her guide me away. As we exited the alley, Lily called after us, her voice all syrup and sass. “Don’t wait up~”

  I hated how much that sounded like an innuendo.

  Elly stayed close as we walked, her pace easy, calm. She seemed less fazed than the others, like she’d already worked through the emotions I was still struggling with.

  “You know,” she said, as we rounded the corner into quieter streets, “this is probably a good thing. They can’t feed on you.”

  I jammed my hands into my pockets. “Yeah. I guess that’s a plus.”

  She shot me a sidelong glance, her mouth twitching up. “See? Silver lining.”

  I sighed and rubbed at my eyes. The tension still sat behind them like a thundercloud. “Sure. Silver lining. Doesn’t mean I have to like it.”

  She didn’t argue.

  We kept walking, her presence just enough to keep me grounded as I tried to process what I’d seen, what I already knew… and what I still wasn’t sure I could live with.

  And yeah, maybe I didn’t want to admit it—but part of me was scared that one day, I’d stop being disturbed by it. That this strange, shadowy world they lived in would stop feeling wrong and start feeling normal.

  That was the part that really made my skin crawl.

  I unlocked the door to my apartment and stepped inside with a heavy sigh. The moment I let the door close behind me, I sank onto the couch like I was trying to merge with it. My body ached—especially my arms from clinging to that damn bus bench for dear life. My knees were bruised, and the crash from all the adrenaline was hitting me like a freight train.

  Elly followed me in and locked the door behind her with that extra click she always made sure to add. Her eyes immediately scanned the room, flicking over the windows and shadows, just in case something was lurking. After a moment, she seemed satisfied and plopped down beside me, curling her legs up under her like a cat claiming her perch.

  “Still thinking about them?” she asked, stretching her arms over her head, the hoodie riding up just slightly to show a sliver of skin. Not that I was looking. I wasn’t.

  I exhaled through my nose. “Not really.”

  She gave me a knowing look—the kind that made me feel like she could flip through the pages of my brain like a magazine.

  “…Okay, maybe a little,” I admitted, slumping lower.

  Elly smirked and draped her arm across the back of the couch like it was a throne. “Look, I get it. You’re human. This whole thing probably seems... weird. Maybe a little unfair?”

  I shifted uncomfortably. “It’s not unfair. It’s just... I don’t know. Strange, I guess.”

  She waved a hand dismissively. “It’s nature, Danny-boy. Lily and Euryale are predators in their own ways. You don’t get mad at a lion for taking down an antelope, right?”

  I thought about it. “I guess not.”

  “Same thing here. This is just how they work. If it makes you feel any better, you’re immune.”

  I scoffed. “Yeah, lucky me.”

  “You are lucky,” she said, nudging me with her elbow. “If they could feed on you, you’d be in trouble. Trust me.”

  I frowned, sinking deeper into the couch cushions. “So, what about you?”

  Elly raised an eyebrow. “What about me?”

  “How do you recharge? You’re not out there, uh... ‘dining out’ like they are.”

  She grinned, a little crooked. “Nope. I just need rest. Maybe a good movie, a little ice cream. You know, normal things.”

  I rubbed my face. “So, just to recap… everyone gets some kind of action except me.”

  Elly barked a laugh. “Oh, is that what this is about? Feeling a little left out, Romeo?”

  I shrugged, rubbing the back of my neck. “I don’t know. It’s just weird, knowing they’re out there… doing that. And I’m just here, exhausted, alone, and eating my feelings.”

  Elly grinned, giving my shoulder a playful nudge. “Well, good news, buddy—you’re not alone. I’m still here. So, what’s it gonna be? We drown your sorrows in cookie dough ice cream and bad action flicks, or do you want me to knock you out with a blackjack so you can stop thinking for a while?”

  I snorted, letting out a half-laugh despite myself. “Tempting, but let’s start with the ice cream.”

  Elly jumped up with a dramatic stretch, her arms reaching toward the ceiling. “Now you’re speaking my language. You pick the movie, and I’ll grab the goods.”

  I leaned back against the couch, letting the tension in my muscles melt away. The adrenaline crash was still humming under my skin, but with Elly here, the world didn’t feel like it was closing in quite so fast. Sure, the others were off doing who knows what, probably too busy satisfying their… appetites. But at least I had Elly. My best friend. And for tonight, that was more than enough.

  I rifled through my ancient DVD collection—mostly old action flicks and cheesy comedies with ridiculous titles and even worse cover art. Eventually, I settled on something light, just what I needed. Something where the explosions didn’t mean anything, and the bad guys lost by the third act.

  Elly returned a few minutes later with a tub of Moose Tracks for me and Cookie Dough for herself, along with a pair of mismatched spoons. She threw herself back onto the couch with a happy grunt and dug into hers like it was the first meal she’d had in days.

  “Cheers to surviving today,” she mumbled around a cold mouthful, raising her spoon like a toast.

  I clinked mine against hers. “To surviving... and not getting kidnapped.”

  She grinned. “And to the perks of not being a snack.”

  I leaned back, still processing everything that had happened. Fights, strange enemies, the Eyes of Aether, trench coats and whispers in the dark. I had bruises I hadn’t even cataloged yet. And beneath all that, there was still the bigger question—how long could I keep this up before something gave?

  But for now?

  For now, I could forget about all of it. I could just enjoy the company, the cold comfort of ice cream, and the haven of a crappy movie and a too-familiar couch.

  Maybe tomorrow would be different.

  But tonight?

  Tonight, I had my best friend.

  And that was enough.