Marc was feeling a little bit weird; Chaney had left town due to a family emergency. Nothing catastrophic, but serious enough she wouldn't be around for a few days. And yet, before she left, she had made a not-so-subtle remark to Sophia to keep him 'entertained' whilst she was gone.
Their dating had only accelerated since that fateful day, but Chaney had become enamoured with Sophia, and even Marc found it strange how comfortable she was with the whole arrangement. That, in her eyes, Sophia was just as entitled to her boyfriend as she was.
Not that they weren't getting it on plenty as well. They'd only had two threesomes since that first one, but Chaney and Sophia had been intimate together plenty of times since.
And Marc didn't mind it at all. He rather enjoyed hearing them regale him with their antics, and sometimes he got to watch.
Part of his feelings of weirdness stemmed from his own blasé attitude to his new social circumstances. It felt like it was a dream at times, too good to be true, the item of two hot girls who were hot for each other, one of which was a literal demon who could do things that no human could do.
It was obscene and absurd, and yet, he'd grown used to it. Bored and numb? Absolutely not.
But no longer was he so stunned all the time. He relished his time with his girlfriend and his stepsister, even if that time might become scarce soon enough, with him, Sophia, and Chaney all narrowing down university courses they'd like to take. And there was no guarantee they'd all be in the same campus.
He knew there'd still be plenty of opportunities. But right now, he was looking forward to tonight. Sophia might've known, she could skim surface thoughts and feelings, but Marc was eager to try something different this night.
Either way, his feelings of weirdness were easily reconciled, and he reclined on the couch in the living room as he watched a movie.
It was the first time in a while his parents were out together, and for some time. Seems things had gotten busy in their world, but now they had some free time that wasn't going to be interrupted.
He did not think on what they were up to in private.
It did mean he could be more candid with Sophia when she came down from upstairs, her body subtly glistening and just slightly damp from a shower.
Her hair shone brilliantly as she walked into the kitchen, Marc tracking her rear notably.
"You've had your face buried in there, and you still can't help staring even when I've got clothes on," Sophia remarked without turning her head as she got herself a drink.
"Picked up on that, huh?" Marc muttered.
Sophia was getting better and better at sensing thoughts and feelings and ascertaining their meaning. She knew when he was leering without even looking now.
"You don't exactly hide it," she quipped, turning around with a mug in one hand and freshly-boiled kettle in the other, making herself some tea, smirking.
"You don't exactly hide it either," Marc retorted, looking up at her as the movie played in the background. "I've seen how people look at you, and I know you enjoy it."
"True, true~" Sophia conceded as she poured milk into her tea and sipped. "But feelings of desire are important in my kind. It lets us find suitable prey, it makes us feel strong. And you could say we like being in the limelight... though, there are legends about the opposite."
"The opposite?"
Sophia walked over and sat down next to Marc, her natural perfume gracing his nose.
"You know we don't 'love' exactly like humans do, though we do get close. Well, it's said that if a demon were to fall in love like a human does, truly, willing to devote body and soul to their love alone... rejection could be fatal."
"You mean, actually dying of a broken heart?" Marc quipped.
Sophia nodded.
"It is just a legend, but rejection in general can be painful for us, especially from Soul Mates. It can cause physical discomfort and lingering doubts in the mind of any rejected demon, though it has to be genuine rejection. A fear-based rejection hurts, but not nearly as bad as being shunned by one you revealed yourself to willingly, and it wasn't a panic reaction."
"So, if I turned you down those months ago..."
"It would've made me miserable for a while. If you wanted to take my offer of memory erasure, it'd be even worse. I'd have to come up with a suitable excuse for why I'd become so depressed."
"Damn... you never said it'd be quite like that for you."
"I didn't want you to make a decision purely on my account. I may be a manipulator and 'man eater', but I do actually like and respect you, Marc. A bond with a Soul Mate is at its best when the affection is mutual."
Marc smirked and reclined into the couch.
"Well, I don't think you have to worry about that anymore. Me asking for a brain reset. I wouldn't want to give this up," he assured.
She giggled, and leaned over to peck him on the cheek before returning to her tea.
"Glad to hear it~" she crooned.
"Still," Marc continued. "The idea your people have legends... that implies you've got a culture, yeah?"
She leaned forward and gave him a curious look.
"I wouldn't call it a 'culture' exactly... our ways are more instinctual than with humans. But, we do have legends, stories, a history, a language that's not exactly our own but ours to command, though art is a different matter. We didn't exactly create communities. You know that part of our history. We're so intermixed with humanity, that our cultures kinda blend... though, go back far enough and I think you'll find parts that are entirely our own thing. Just... we don't know a lot about that time."
"Why's that?"
"Well, the purges by human hunters didn't help, but many of us just... weren't interested in preserving a lot of our ancient history that didn't pertain to our abilities. And now... well, who's going to go looking, and where?"
"That's kinda sad," Marc said.
Sophia shrugged.
