Girl/Succubus Shorts: Spending The Fall With Baal

Remmy sprang into the air, snatching up a falling leaf as it flitted on a breeze. She stomped down into a pile of leaves, sending them scattering. Pinching the red-toasted leaf between her fingers, she eyed it intently.

“This is so magical, Lucas. Back home, the trees never get proper leaves, so leaves never fall.”

“Really?” Lucas replied. “I thought maybe the seasons were reversed and intensified like Australia, the real-world equivalent of hell, but I suppose it did just feel like an extremely humid, 80° day.”

“Oh yeah, the humidity is what sucks there. I’ve never seen the trees grow leaves, and Neon said he hasn’t either, but he heard they did like... 50,000 years ago or whenever Mom was still human.”

“I wonder where they get energy from, then.”

Remmy shook her head, causing her violet hair to jiggle. “I dunno. Maybe the acid vapor. It’s supposed to be nutrient-rich, it just also burns the whole way down if you drink it.”

“Well, are you satisfied for today?” he asked. “We should probably head back and get ready for Marianna’s Halloween party. It will probably take me about a half hour to put all the belts and accessories on.”

“I guess, but you should have just put it on before we came to the park. Nobody would think anything of it.”

“If that’s true, why didn’t you come in your costume?”

“Duh! I can change instantly. Why not squeeze in an extra outfit today? Am I not cute? You’re getting double today, lucky boy.”

“No, you are adorable.” Lucas chuckled and pecked her lips. “30 minutes isn’t too long. A couple years back, Edward wanted to be some Final Fantasy villain, and it took him 2 hours. He looked ridiculous with that long wig and the giant wings.”

Dressed in a white, almost knee-length gown, Marianna knocks on the bathroom door. “Are you done yet?! Lucas, I need to go.”

Lucas grunts and huffs. “Well... No... but I’m decent.”

He opens the door and carries the rest of his costume with him. Sucking his belly in, he wraps a blood-red belt beneath his chest and sharpens his figure. He slaps a dull dagger to one hip, alongside some vials, and a prop pistol on the other side. Then he affixes a crucifix to his collar and wraps a short, matching red scarf around his neck. Finally, he throws the midnight black cloak over his head, hooking the loops to the glittering cross.

As he sits back to catch his breath, something wet brushes against his cheek. Beside him, he sees Remmy with her tongue and floppy ears bobbing.

“What are you— Stop! Bad dog.” He giggles and shakes his head. “That’s weird...”

“Don’t lie. You liked it, Mr. Demon Hunter. You’re laughing.” She stands in her blue bodysuit, wearing her collar and puppy paw gloves.

“Just not with anyone else around, ok?”

Marianna exits with a sigh, tugging her wings forward to avoid catching them on anything. “Well, your effort paid off, Lucas. I don’t think we’ll be seeing any demons tonight with you dressed like that.”

He laughs. “Between the two of us. I doubt any demons want to face off against an angel, even one as petite as you.”

“Not only that, I’m packing.” She snorts, tugging away the side of her white dress to flash a costume gun at her hip. “Real angels carry weapons, right?”

Remmy nods. “Yes, but I’ve always heard it’s swords or chain-whips, sometimes a staff, but there’s probably still a hidden blade in it. I think Boss said Michael uses the Cutlass of Justice or something.”

Neon meets them on the Argenziano lawn, wearing a dark tunic with feathery black wings behind his back.

“W-what are you doing?” Marianna squeaks. “I didn’t invite you, Neon, and I’m an angel. You can’t be one, too; people will think our costumes are a pair.”

The incubus replies, “Oh, you didn’t have to invite me. I live here, and—”

“No you don’t. You are just crashing here until you can get on your feet here and find a place of your own. You need to be gone by the first of November.”

“But that’s tomorrow.”

She replies, “Exactly! Now change before people start arriving.”

“I’m a dark angel. It’s totally different. I’m like the angel Mossad or CIA; I’m above the law.”

“I don’t care.”

“Oh, alright...” He shifts to his Daddy Discipline costume, his coat morphing into a cape. A phantom mask appears over his eyes, and a tophat sprouts from his dark mess of hair.

“No, not your alter ego! This isn’t a TV show; you’ll blow your secret.” She glances at the cars coming toward the driveway. “F-fine, you win.”

“You’ll let me stay and become my bride?”

“Ye— No! Change; you can be an angel, but stay away from me the rest of—”

“I heard 66% of a yes.”

“You need 100% for consent.”

He frowns for a moment. “I bought... I obtained pajamas through undisclosed means for you. Doesn’t that mean we get to try them out together?”

“Change! Change!” She jerks at his shirt. “I modeled them for you after Lucas swore they were real, and I told you thanks. That’s all I owed you.”

As he changes back, Remmy’s big sister, Pai, pops out of the darkness in a bikini with a sack slung over her shoulder. Atop her pink head, she has matching fluffy cat ears and a black triangle dots her nose.

Marianna squints her way. “What? Are you a cat burglar?”

“No, I just finished my trick-or-treating rounds.” She sets the sack down and splays the top open. “I thought they were supposed to give me beaded necklaces, but I got mostly candy. A few guys just dumped the whole bowl in here. I don’t mind.” She digs into the sack, up to the shoulder in candy. “I think there are some caramels in here. Caramel is my favorite.”

Neon pulls one necklace out of the bag. “Beads? That’s Mardi Gras, right?”

Remmy’s eyes pop. “Wait... Pai, did you...?”

“Whoopsie...” Pai shrugs. “That one guy did give me beads, though.”

Marianna snatches the necklace from Neon’s loose grip. “These aren’t beads; it’s a candy necklace.”

Remmy leans to look at Pai bent over her candy haul. “Sis, stand up before everybody gets here. You don’t have enough coverage in the back; I can see your—”

“Tart cherry gummi! Ooh... these are good,” Pai says.

“Is that the slang for that these days?” A notably shorter, blonde Daddy Discipline says, eyes glued to Pai’s wiggling derriere. “When I was driving up, I thought I saw another Daddy out here, weird.” Pai whips around and hisses at Edward, and he continues, “Oh, the kitty is playing hard to get.”

“No, my body is for everybody’s eyes, except yours. I’m going to go change if she invited you. Miss Argenziano, you snub Neon but invite Edtard?” She scurries into the house, followed by her adoring fanboy.

“I am a bit offended.” Neon shakes his head with closed eyes.

“I invited the whole school. That unfortunately includes Edward.”

A small rabbit-eared girl dashes out to greet a medium-complexioned werewolf with a fro of curls. “Yuri!”

The werewolf pulls her into a hug. “Your werebunny costume came together well, Danielle.”

A mummy arrives next, hobbling closer. “Hey, Remmy...”

“Bud? Is that you? I almost forgot about you. Don’t touch me, though.”

“I’m sorry, Remmy. Oh... and my name isn’t Bud. People just call me that. My name is Bert.”

“Oh, I see. Well, I appreciate your regret and forgive you.”

At some point, a tall minotaur appeared and loitered near the refreshments. Last to arrive, a dirty blonde ghost girl materializes to haunt the party.

“Zoi, you did come,” Marianna says.

“Yep, but it’s just me.”

“Oh, I thought maybe the minotaur was Ares.”

“Not unless he changed his mind or something... Whoever that is, I think they are too tall. He’s even taller than Remmy’s cousin. It’s cute you two are matching your costumes. Hey, is there some steam brewing between you two?”

“No, no; never! I didn’t know what he was going to be.” Marianna scans the minotaur again. “That’s a pretty realistic costume. I’m not sure who that is...”

“Really? Maybe I’ll see if he can show me the highway to Heaven while Ares is playing games with me, then.”

“W-wait, Zoi; no!”