"--and then she just said 'I have to go' and ran off!"
"That's... almost exactly what happened on our date. She didn't say anything else?"
"Nothing!" Amara collapsed onto her couch, her tail grabbing the water bottle from the floor. "I've been texting her, and I asked Tessa and Chloé to do the same, but no one has heard anything. I'm really worried, Nick."
Nick sighed. "I know, I am too, I just don't know what else we can do. If she's not willing to let us help, what are our options?"
"Can't we just... I dunno, get everyone to corner her?"
"An intervention? That's... certainly dramatic." Nick paused, likely thinking about the logistics. "Maybe it's worth thinking about. If everyone is at the party tomorrow, we can ask what they think?"
"The party's tomorrow?! Shut up!"
"Shockingly, yes, the Halloween party is on Halloween."
"I still don't have a costume!" Amara groaned, grabbing a pillow and pulling it close. "And how am I supposed to focus on partying when I'm so worried about Vee?" She smashed the pillow against her face, letting out a scream of frustration.
After a few moments, Nick finally spoke up again. "Y'know, someone told me once that I can't let my worries stop me from living my life."
"Yeah? Well, whoever that person is, I bet she hates having her words turned against her. Hypothetically. But also, she sounds super fucking hot."
"Eh, maybe like a seven. Seven and a half if you're into brunettes."
Amara grabbed the pillow with her tail and chucked it at Nick. "Oh, shut up! I'm at least an eight and you know it!"
Nick caught the pillow easily, tossing it back on the couch before sitting next to her. "Look, I'm not gonna keep quoting you, but you made a lot of good points before my date. Life keeps going, whether you want it to or not." He paused, placing a hand on Amara's tail. She looked over at him, the facade of indignancy breaking as their eyes met. "We'll check with Chloé and Tessa tomorrow, see if they're on board, and then try to talk with Vee next week."
"No, you're right, that... sounds like a good plan." Amara finally sat up, her tail curling around Nick's waist as they talked. "I still feel bad I haven't tried to fix things with Derek yet. I promised her I would, and I thought I might be able to use my powers to do something, but I've been so busy with Tessa and... ugh."
They leaned against each other briefly, letting the silence hang in the air, before Nick spoke up again.
"You know what might cheer you up? I had a feeling you'd forget about your costume, so I threw something together for you."
"Seriously? This isn't just, like, a weird fetish thing, is it?"
"I would never!" Nick stood up and moved to the kitchen, grabbing his backpack off a chair. As he opened it, he continued speaking, his voice slightly quieter. "I was just... thinking back to when this all started. When you first got your tail, your horns, and you were so nervous about staying hidden. What if, to celebrate this new you, you just... went as yourself? No more hiding?"
"Nick, I say this with nothing but respect for you, but that sounds like a terrible idea."
"Just hear me out!" Nick cleared a space on the counter. "It's Halloween, so everyone is already primed to assume that everything is a costume. All we have to do is give them enough reasons to believe you're wearing one!"
"I'm... still skeptical, but alright, keep talking."
After dumping out his backpack on the counter, Nick started walking through his plan. He had craft glue for her horns, to make them look fake, and contacts that she could pretend were glowing instead of her eyes.
He also had a large black belt, lined with thick pockets. The pockets were filled with random pieces of circuitry and wiring, and a large hole had been cut out of the back for her tail. Ideally, he explained, it would look like she'd simply bought a really fancy tech tail from a costume company.
The last item was legitimately a cheap costume piece; a pair of plastic succubus wings, probably from the pop-up Halloween store down the street.
"Is this where the money ran out?" Amara asked, smirking.
"No, this is the most important piece! If the wings are this cheap, it'll make everything else look fake too. Plus, let's face it, your wings are way too big to have out at the party."
"They are pretty fucking massive..." Amara mumbled, looking over the disparate costume pieces. "You really think this will work?"
Nick moved closer, pulling her in for a hug before speaking. "I think you deserve a night to be proud of who you are. If that's not now, then when is it?"
Amara buried her face in Nick's chest, mulling over his words in her head. She thought about the last month, realizing that his words rang true; she'd been incredibly nervous every single day, worried someone might find out. The constant cramps from tucking her tail in her sweaters, the frustration of locking herself away for a week when her wings appeared, and never being able to take her beanies off. A lot of that stress had faded once she figured out shapeshifting, but after falling in love with her demonic aspects, it got frustrating hiding them away constantly.
Am I proud of being a demon? Do I want to brag about it to the whole school?
The instant she asked the question, the answer was obvious. The thought of everyone seeing her real form, fawning over her horns and her tail, it sounded amazing. Whatever being a demon meant, if it meant anything, she didn't care. For now, she was proud of who she was. Nick was absolutely right, why should she deny herself this chance?
"Alright. Let's do it!"
"Great! Want to try some of it on? Get ready for tomorrow?"
