Gehenna's Gate

Vendetta

' I've got eyelids heavy enough to break diamonds
You pray for sound and I pray for silence
Damn right faithless, I can't deny you'll
Find me with half a mind to get violent

You know it isn't over till I say it's over
No more little angels sitting on my shoulder
So give me the edge of a blade and a time and a place
And I'll leave them cold and pushing up boulders '

Over the months, it had gotten a lot easier and more of a passive reaction to notice the presences of people approaching her, long before she ever heard them coming.

Maybe it partially had to do with the company she kept not often trying to conceal themselves from her, but it was progress nonetheless.

"Hello, my love." A smooth voice reached her ears, instantly bringing a smile to the girl's face as she turned to greet Xiao warmly.

"Hi, handsome." Came her reply, eagerly leaning into his body once he'd outstretched his arms toward her for a hug.

It had been a long day for the both of them, but they'd experienced it separately, finally reuniting long after the sun had set.

"How was your first day training with Skirk?"

Vena paused and pulled back to gaze into Xiao's eyes, curvy lips pursed as she took a moment to reflect.

' Am I walking with gods or merely stumbling forth
Until there's fire at the gates, until I fall to the floor?
You know I live by the feather and die by the sword
And I will sunder the earth only to burn the reward

Even in this garden of gardens I am the god of the gaps
I am the demon of Sodom
I am the blood of an angel, the fate of the fallen
Nobody knows where I came from, even I have forgotten '

That timing of that was comical, so much so that Vena would have assumed Xiao had put that song on if she hadn't been the one to do it herself just a minute prior to him showing up.

An amused smile spread across her lips, eyebrows raising as she huffed out a laugh.

"Short version? Complicated, but mostly just her wanting to get a general idea of what I'm capable of. Needless to say, I don't think she was impressed." Vena winced awkwardly, knowing she shouldn't take it personally, but it only made the pressure to improve all the more suffocating.

Xiao's hands reached up and gently caressed the sides of her face, tenderly luring her to bring her gaze back up to meet his own.

"Try not to let stuff like that get under your skin. These things take time. Do you think all of us immediately knew exactly how to use all of our powers too? We were all new once. It's even harder for you considering you only have half magical blood. Remember when I told you that you have to give yourself patience and mercy?" His thumb lovingly ran across her skin, helping to sooth her words.

Vena couldn't help but crack a smile again, still amazed by how easy he made it seem to calm her nerves and help ease her worries.

"You're right... thank you. Between my father's journal and Skirk, they did help solidify something in my mind though. I doubt she even realized it." The girl pointed a finger over toward the speakers nearby, gesturing about the current song playing.

"I've made my choice. No more running, no more second guessing, no more doubts... I've gone back and forth so many times the past few months... doubted myself, everyone and everything. Not anymore. I'm fighting until the end, no matter what it takes." Her steely resolve was obvious in her facial expression now, features set and unflinching, determined.