After the End (Julian and MC)

15

When the doors open, Portia rushes inside, dropping to her knees at Nadia's bedside. The rest of us follow her in, with Asra sitting on the bed beside Nadia and taking her hand in his. Aisha and Salim walk over to their son, inspecting the Countess with curious eyes. I turn my head to look at Scout, who closes the door behind us before taking a blanket from her bag and laying it down on the ground.

"Thank you, Scout. I'm sorry to ask so much of you." I smile down at her, and she gently pats my shoulder.

Scout bobs her head reassuringly, yawning and laying down on her blanket before curling up to sleep.

Turning to Julian, I smile fondly when he yawns tiredly and rubs his eye with his free hand. He slowly looks down at me, returning my smile before pressing a kiss to my lips. I turn into him and wrap my arms around his neck, sighing when he slips his own arms around my waist. Julian kisses me for a long moment before breaking away, gently cupping my face and kissing my forehead.

"MC, I... I'm proud of you, for everything." He confesses quietly, resting his forehead against mine.

I smile and close my eyes, holding onto Julian as my heart flutters in my chest. "I'm proud of you, too. I know you didn't want to face the Devil again, but I'm glad that you agreed to help me." My voice is low and soft, only loud enough for him to hear.

"I'd have never let you go alone, you know that." He murmurs in response, moving to rest his head on my shoulder. "I love you, MC." Julian whispers, pressing a kiss to my exposed skin.

"I love you too, Julian." I reply sweetly, slipping my fingers through his thick red hair and holding him a moment more before Nadia's voice draws my attention. I look to see the Countess sitting up with a hand pressed to her forehead, her brow knitted with pain.

Portia supports Nadia's back and smiles comfortingly at her, and the Countess relaxes and returns the handmaiden's smile. "How do you feel, milady?" She asks her, staring back at Nadia with widened eyes.

Nadia looks back at her for a moment before inhaling sharply and getting to her feet, leaning on her as she looks around. "I... I was sleeping... Again." She frowns, locking eyes with me. "MC? You're alright? What happened to you?" Nadia wonders, making her way over to where Julian and I are standing.

"It's a long story. We're going to face the Devil, and we need your help." I answer, taking Nadia's hand when she holds it out for me.

The Countess' eyes soften as she nods determinedly, her lips curling up in a smile. "Of course, we cannot allow him to run rampant through Vesuvia." She replies, her smile fading as she stares at my face. "You look exhausted." Nadia frowns, turning to look at Portia and the others. "You all do." She adds, slowly looking back at me.

"We need to rest a while, but we'll face the Devil soon." I tell Nadia gently, smiling to myself when Julian yawns again.

"By all means, rest. I shall keep watch." Nadia nods, indicating to the bed.

Portia goes over to the wardrobe on the opposite side of the room, pulling spare blankets and pillows out for everyone. Aisha and Salim nod gratefully and take a pillow each, collecting a blanket and moving over to a large chaise by the window. They settle down together while Portia gives Asra a pillow and a blanket, and the magician murmurs his thanks as he moves to a red velvet chaise near his parents.

"You two can take the bed, I'll rest on a chaise." Portia smiles at Julian and I, winking as she walks past us.

I look to Nadia, who nods and smiles. Julian takes my hand and leads me over to the bed, peeling off his gloves and boots while I crawl under the blankets. I close my eyes and curl into Julian when he lays down beside me, slipping an arm around his waist as he pulls me into his chest. With a soft sigh, I slip into sleep, relaxing and pushing away the unease that comes from thinking of facing the Devil.