Blessed by Night

"I\'m kind of disappointed that they didn\'t. This would have given me an opportunity to leave and go find my cute little sunflowers." Thea swooned.

"Those girls don\'t even like you."

"I\'m sorry, what was that, you fucking cockroach?"

"N-Nothing, sis..."

"That\'s what I thought."

Apophis had been casually leaning against the wall the entire time; just watching Mal reach his realization.

"You know, you could have told him that the key to figuring out this whole thing was in refinement. It might\'ve saved him some time."

Thea shrugged. "It undoubtedly would\'ve, but having to figure this out on his own isn\'t the kind of thing that will hurt him in the long run.

Besides, I was always certain he would be able to get it eventually since he\'s a smart guy. I bet I\'ll have him in tip top shape before-"

*Crash!*

The trio were jarred by the sound of a massive amount of glass hitting the floor.

Malachi was standing over the glass with a bit of an incredulous look on his face as if he couldn\'t believe what he had just done.

Thea smiled within the darkness as she gave her brothers a small nudge.

"See? He didn\'t need me to tell him anything at all. Isn\'t my little pupil the best?"

- 2 Weeks Later

"It\'s been a while since I\'ve done this... Never thought I would need to again since I don\'t require the kind of grooming that I used to."

Anna: "Aren\'t you glad you let me talk you into doing this though?"

"I am. It\'s more relaxing than I remembered."

Bianca: "Why didn\'t you let me do it!?"

Mal: "Do you know how to do a straight part?"

Anna: "Have you been cutting your own hair since you were thirteen out of a need to rebel?"

"Welll..." Bianca awkwardly looked at the floor.

""Sorry, babe.""

"I hate you both!"

The pair laughed despite Bianca\'s serious considerations of revenge.

"And... done!" Anna finally stood up and admired the sight of Malachi in the chair in front of her.

Her fiance had a fresh new haircut with three razor-sharp parts on the side of his head.

Anna had even touched up his hairline and offered to give him a re-twist, but they didn\'t really have that kind of time.

"How\'s it look?" Mal smiled.

Anna unbuttoned her pants and started to undress.

Luna stopped her at the last minute and even gave her a rather brutal wedgie.

"Ow! H-Hey!"

"Just use your words, Annalise. We don\'t have the time for anything else."

"I can\'t help it if I speak in body language!"

"You quite literally can, sweet pea."

Malachi pretended as if he weren\'t enormously interested whatever Anna was about to do next.

He crossed the bathroom to admire himself in the mirror before nodding in approval.

Nadine suddenly hugged him from behind without saying a word.

"Nervous about something?" he asked.

"Not really... Just another mission, right?"

"Just another mission, love." He reaffirmed.

Somehow, it was as if a switch had been flipped in the room and everyone\'s demeanors suddenly changed.

Each of the girls kissed Malachi silently before they stepped into the bedroom and began getting dressed.

After weeks of planning and prep, Mal and the girls were finally ready to venture from the base and head for Arias\' new domain.

To be honest, none of them were really sure what they would find.

Mal\'s attempts to use his little \'night vision\' to see what their world was like had ended in failure at every turn.

This was their first time stepping back into civilization, and they were almost sure it wouldn\'t be a pleasant welcome.

But they were prepared, and they had assembled a small squad to accompany them and aid in a fight if need be.

Even though the entire goal was not to fight in the first place...

Mal got dressed in relatively light clothes that wouldn\'t spurn much attention.

A simple black t-shirt with no sleeves clung tightly to every rippling muscle lying underneath. A small sheath was strapped to both of his thighs that contained shining silver knives.

He pulled on a pair of fingerless gloves and adorned a pair of simple sneakers before he was nearly fully dressed.

\'Where\'s my... Oh.\'

Mal went towards the door and poked his head outside.

In the living room, he found his daughter surrounded by a miniature petting zoo that contained an axolotl, a massive lion, a big snake, and a loud-talking bird.

"Munchkin."

"Uwah!!?"

As Mal suspected, Camille was wearing a pair of dark sunglasses that were too big for her face.

Once she saw him coming, Camille quickly hid the evidence behind her back where Zazu would cover it with his wings.

"Bu!"

"Don\'t \'daddy\' me. I saw what you just did, little miss."

The infant held up her hands innocently.

"She\'s telling the truth, boss! Honest!" Zazu had become Camille\'s right hand in a very short time.

He didn\'t believe that she could do anything wrong, and was often willing to sneak her little treats after bedtime.

Mal had already learned to recall him right before they put Cami to bed.

"Yea, sure she is." Mal rolled his eyes.

He held out his hand and Zazu was instantly recalled back to his body- along with the still napping Ajani.

Malachi\'s skin darkened almost instantly and a quartet of mischievous black snakes sprouted from his lower back.

Serosh brought him his sunglasses without even having to ask, and Malachi slipped them onto his face with satisfaction.

"Ah… Really brings me back to the early days."

"…Bu."

"No, they do not look better on you. Go take a nap."

-

After leaving Camille in the care of his sister and their parents, Malachi and his fiancés headed upstairs towards the hangar.

There, they found a small squad comprised of Aisha, Serana, and two others.

Ryo was also present; though he was in special handcuffs.

He trembled erratically like a newborn horse as he tried not to collapse underneath Apophis\' burning gaze.

\'W-Where the fuck did that guy come from... And why is he so intense?!\'

Ryo shook his head hard and redirected his focus towards Serana.

"…Can we tal-"

Ryo couldn\'t say what exactly what happened in the second after that, but the next thing he knew there was a wall of darkness over his face.

He had no idea that he had just avoided a surely lethal blow from Apophis by the skin of his teeth.

"I thought we were all playing nice here. Or at least that you\'d be civil…"

Apophis retracted his arm from the shadow. "Don\'t give me that shit. You\'re no better than I am when it comes to these things."

Everyone turned around to see Mal and the girls arriving in a close knit group like always.

Joanne and Nadine were glued to his sides like holsters.

He looked down at their beautiful faces and engagement rings and suddenly he understood Apophis completely.

"…We still might need him, so hold off on that for now, yea?"

Apophis snorted.

His anger was dispersed when Serana suddenly slipped her hand in his own.

"Have I told you how much I adore your possessive side?"

Apophis smiled. "I-"

"E-Enough of this lovey dovey stuff, get in the truck!" Sei forcefully separated the two and tossed Serana in the back seat.

"Mom! I\'ve seen Mal do way worse to you, so stop cockblocking!"

"D-Don\'t say that word to me!"

"Would you prefer tallywacker?"

"Serana!"

Nadine chuckled as she leaned into Mal\'s ear. "Funny how she can\'t hear it, but she can put it in her-"

"Nadine Willow Alacera-Saint, don\'t you dare finish that sentence!"

Nadine turned into a small bat and hid on top of Malachi\'s head for safety.

"Alright, alright, let\'s load up and go, yeah? Preferably all in one piece and bruise free.." Mal said.

Serana finally stopped resisting and allowed her mother to throw her into the backseat; though not without shedding a few small tears at the sight of Apophis\' hand waiving her goodbye.

\'Hurry back, gorgeous.\' He winked.

Serana felt her cheeks get hot uncontrollably.

\'When I get back, we should… Y-You know.\' She thought nervously.

Gobsmacked, Apophis was now tempted not to let her leave.

On the wall nearby, Thea, Belloc, and Melanie were all standing around and quietly watching Mal\'s group depart.

Melanie and Belloc in particular seemed rather intimate together. Their status as a new couple was quite the hot topic within the base these days.

They would have normally gone over to wish everyone luck, but as of now they were having their own private discussion.

"Are you sure that this is how you want to leave? I\'m not so fragile that I would stand in the way of you resolving your past."

"I know you\'re not, babe, but I just… I think it\'ll be easier for everyone involved if I just leave like this. I want my own fresh start."

Melanie slipped her arms around Belloc and looked up at him with pleading eyes.

"Please… I want to live with you in your kingdom."