Chapter 43: Chapter 41: Introspection

A week or so later, Alex’s evening reading was interrupted by a knock on her door. “Come in!” She called, placing her bookmark and closing the book.

Raphael gingerly stepped through the door, taking care not to show her back to Alex as she closed the door. She was holding her arms behind her back too, and Alex was pretty sure she knew what was going on.

Still, it was important to let Raphael take things at her own pace, so she pretended she didn’t notice. “Raphael!” She said warmly. “Are you here to watch TV again?”

“N-no.” Raphael stammered. “Um…I have something to show you, promise you won’t freak out?”

“I promise I won’t freak out.” Alex said, setting down her book. “What do you want to show me?”

Raphael took her hands away, and a small spade tail sprung out from behind her back. “I, um…I asked Kali for it back.” She said. “I thought…I thought if I was going to enjoy being a demon, I should commit.”

Alex gave her a reassuring smile. “Well, I think it looks cute.” She said. “It’s your body and your life, so you should get to choose what goes on with it. Have you showed anyone else yet?”

Raphael shook her head, blushing. “N-no. I thought I would come show you first because we had already…you know, talked about this. Um…do you think anyone else is going to freak out?”

Alex chuckled, patting the bed next to her. “Come take a seat.” She said.

Raphael sat, looking up at Alex nervously. “So…”

“No, no one’s going to freak out.” Alex replied. “They’re probably gonna be a little surprised about you being a demon now, but they’re not gonna suddenly hate you or anything just because you look a little different. I mean, look at Lilith, she’s got the whole angel and demon look going on and no one bats an eye at that.”

“Yeah, but…she’s a Perfect Chimera, that’s different.” Raphael said.

“How?”

“They’re…they’re exceptions!”

Alex raised an eyebrow. “To what?”

Raphael froze. “I…right. I…forgot.”

Alex smiled, throwing an arm around the younger girl. “Don’t worry about it.” She said. “Everyone here will accept you without a second thought.”

“How can you be so sure?” Raphael asked in a small voice. “I’ve seen people who I thought were good be…really nasty about this sort of thing.”

Alex pulled Raphael a little closer. “This is different. The people here are…well, they accepted me readily enough, and I attacked them. And I’d say they’re pretty fine with demons, too, Lilith’s even dating one! Honestly, I would be more worried about your angel side, were it not for the fact that we know they’re fine with it.”

“I…okay.”

“Would it make you feel better if I came with you when you show everyone?”

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Raphael looked up hopefully. “Really?! You would do that?”

“Of course I would! What else are friends for?”

Raphael stood up. “Um, can we do it now, then?”

“Sure.” Alex replied, standing up and grabbing Raphael’s hand. “Let’s go.”

The two left the room and made their way to one of the living rooms. Usually, if people weren’t doing anything specific and didn’t want to be alone, they would gather in a living room, where they would watch TV or chat with the others.

It looked like that night Carmen, Lilith, and Siph were the only ones in the room, which wasn’t too surprising. Siph’s father had been training Lilith’s parents hard, so they usually went to bed early, Vithi liked to keep to herself, and Emily spent most of her evenings studying.

“Ah, you two.” Siph said. “We were looking for a couple more people to play cards, are you interested?”

“Um…” Raphael began. “I…have an announcement.” She was hiding her tail behind her back again, trying to keep it as out of sight as possible using her free hand.

Lilith put her phone away, looking up curiously. “What’s up?” She asked.

“Um…” Raphael trailed off, and Alex gave her hand a gentle squeeze. “Um…I…I’m kind of not just an angel anymore.” She began. “I…when I asked Kali to prove who she was, she made me a demon too.”

Raphael nervously took her hand away and let her tail come into full view. “I’m a succubus too. I, um…I decided I didn’t want to hide it anymore, since I was liking how having the two Dom- I mean, Racial Classes made me feel. I wanted to…commit.”

Carmen gave her a smile. “Well, I’m glad to hear you’re feeling up to sharing with us.” She said. “If you’re ever wondering about anything, feel free to ask me or Lilith about it, we know a thing or two about adapting to becoming a demon.”

“She’s exactly right.” Lilith said. “Is there anything else?”

“No, I…that’s all.” Raphael said. “I just wanted to get it out there.”

“Well, I’m proud of you.” Carmen said. “It’s brave of you to do so, really.”

Raphael giggled bashfully. “Thanks.”

“Hey, Alex, that reminds me.” Carmen said. “Do you want the Catkin Racial Class? I had Kali teach me how to give Racial Classes to people who have already  been transformed, and I can spare the Worship for it. I figured that, if you’re going to be one, you might as well…be one, you know?”

Alex blinked in surprise. “I…yeah. That would be good, actually.”

Carmen nodded. “Awesome, give me a moment here.” She closed the book she was reading before standing up and walking over to Alex. She placed a finger on Alex’s forehead, and then…

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