Eirian stood in the middle of the balcony on the third floor- one of many balconies in the gigantic house she now called ‘home’. She stared out into the night sky, taking puffs off her almost half-gone cigarette. She never really liked them- hated them, actually- but with how stressed she was now, it didn’t really matter. She’d do anything to keep her mind off of things, even if just for a few minutes. It was worth it. It was one of the many things that had changed about her ever since Shoichi had left for college. Her light autumn hair had become darker, though not as quite as dark as Luna’s. It also had grown out a considerate amount- falling just past her collarbones.

Taking another puff of her new found addiction, Eirian sighed and leaned out onto the top of the railing, almost in a daze. That is, until she heard the loud noises and screaming three stories below. Staying in her relaxed position, she simply cocked her head to the side, listening intently. After a few moments, she simply decided that it must be Vell and Reaver- hell, maybe it was even River and Syao. Who knew. Her new family seemed to be very open with their sex life.. Eirian honestly thought that they had no care who heard them, except for the children of course.

Laughing almost silently, she turned her attention back to the cigarette and puffed on it a few more times, silently letting the smoke seep out of her mouth each time. Leaning up, Eirian threw it to the ground before stomping on it harshly and then picking it back up again, quickly throwing it over the balcony before turning around and walking down the hallway and into Luna’s room. She had tucked her in just before heading outside but wanted to make sure she was okay— Eirian always worried about her, even over the simplest of things.

Cracking open the door, she peered in and smiled to herself when she heard the soft snores emitting from her daughter’s half-way opened mouth. Closing the door as quiet as she could, she walked down the stairs, past the kitchen and down another flight of stairs, making her way down another hallway until she came to the library.
For the past year, this had been her bedroom. She wanted to leave River the room to himself- especially when Syao was around…- and this was the only place Eirian could feel comfortable. Sleeping on the small pull-out couch, with the same blankets Shoichi and her had used a multitude of times. She felt the most at peace when she in this room.. and it eased the pain of not having her love around. Eirian dragged herself over to the small couch, not bothering to make it into a bed, and curled up into herself, using the blankets as almost a fortress- protecting her from the outside world.
—
The demoness opened her eyes slowly and groaned. How long had she slept? Surely it couldn’t have been that long.. she never slept for long periods at a time anymore. Too many nightmares. Stretching out her body, Eirian turned over and looked at the clock- 4:00 AM. Dang, I really did sleep longer than normal. Right as the thought passed through her mind, a loud gurgling noise erupted from her stomach. She stood up and folded the blankets, placing them back on the couch before walking out of the room and heading towards the kitchen.
As soon as she got to the top of the stairs, though, her stomach erupted into a million butterflies. Her gaze had automatically peered into the darkness of the living room to see if anyone was up- and she saw the snow-white hair peeking out from under a thick blanket. I must be dreaming, I have to be dreaming. Wake up! Quickly she scratched herself on the cheek, causing small drops of blood to drip out.
Eirian stood in the middle of the living room with tears streaming down her face for a few moments before jumping onto the couch and wrapping her arms around the dark angel tightly. She knew the poor guy must be exhausted- hell, he had probably just gotten back a few hours ago, if that. But she didn’t care. Positioning herself on top of him, she kissed him on the cheeks, nose, and lastly the lips to wake him up.

Please don’t go …