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The atmosphere shifted when Nero proclaimed they had needed Caden. Cassi felt they were no longer needed for this half of the conversation. She tilted her head back and kissed Nic’s jaw before tugging him away from the front door. She didn’t want to barge in the middle of something intimate, but she was also too tired to get back into the SUV. She could only imagine how tired Nic was. It probably wasn’t smart to let him drive.

Cassiopeia pulled Nic through the yard where they snuck around to the back door. Avery, it seemed, had the same idea. He was already at the back with the door unlocked and opened when Cass got there with Nic.

”You two look like you’ve been awake all night. What happened?”

Cassi sighed, rubbing her hand over her tired face. ”Caden broke into my shop and ruined half my inventory while summoning a demon. He was trying to get answers on Mundus. Trying to summon him. Caden ended up killing the demon before getting arrested. They stuck him in the basement.”

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Avery started to feel the same way Cassi did, so when he saw her making an escape with Nic, Avery tucked Kimiko away and did the same. He felt secure in thinking that Nero wouldn’t kill Caden. Not yet, anyway.

He walked to the back door and opened it just before Nic and Cassi arrived. Cassiopeia revealed the details of what had happened, and his eyes widened in shock.

”Putain de merde,” Avery cursed and ran a hand over his chin. He glanced at Kimiko before looking at Cass. He knew how important that shop was to her.

”Is there anything we can do about your shop?”

Cassi smiled tiredly and patted Avery’s chest. ”Not right now. Right now, I just want to sleep. It’s been a long night.”

Avery nodded quickly and gestured to the guest side of Caden and Nero’s home. ”Everything is made up and clean as always. I’ll make sure you aren’t disturbed, but I’ll have the staff make a late lunch.”

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Caden remained bowed while Nero spoke, letting their disappointed words wash over him. Nero was right, of course. Caden had acted rashly; he knew that now, but it hadn’t mattered initially. He felt the tonal shift in Nero’s voice as well as the space around him. He waited until he heard the others leave before he lifted his head to look at Nero.

”I should have stayed. I made it about me when it’s not. I should have stayed so we could figure it out together.” Caden bowed his head again, closing his eyes to block out one of his senses. ”Ich habe durch die Beschwörung des Dämons nichts gelernt,” he whispered.

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Nic was all-too-happy to let Cassi lead them away. As much as Caden deserved whatever admonishment the little demon was giving him, he really didn’t want to be witness to it. Besides, he was exhausted. When they reached the back door, Nic gave a tired smile to Avery before snorting at his comment. The truth was, they had been up all night. Fighting a yawn, he waved at Avery. “Thank you.” He told the man before letting Cassi lead the way.

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Fighting off her own yawn, Kiki wrapped both arms around Avery’s torso and rested her head on his chest as she closed her eyes. “We should follow their example…” She mumbled into his shirt.

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“Damn right you should have.” Nero said with a huff and looked away from Caden. It wasn’t easy staying mad at someone literally bowing and kneeling at their feet, but they were determined to stand their ground. At his whisper, however, Nero look at him with a scoff. “Of course you didn’t. Crowley and I are the only demons to really entertain outside of our species. You wouldn’t have gotten anything but little shits.”

They crossed their arms over their chest, eyes narrowed at Caden as they tried to decide what to do with him. The imp chose to just scoff again, loudly this time. “You look ridiculous, get up already. What’s done is done and you have all eternity to make it up to me now.”

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Cassiopeia thanked Avery before another yawn over took her. She led Nic through the house to one of the bedrooms on the main floor. She could have taken Nic to the master suite, knowing Caden's staff was meticulous with their cleaning, but she always hated that room. Instead, Cassi took him to one of the smaller rooms that was next to her greenhouse. She held Nic's hand until she walked inside.

The bedroom was white like all the others but accented with yellows and greens. Yawning once more, Cassi walked over to the windows and drew the curtains to keep the sunlight out while they slept.

”I haven't been up all night for quite some time,” she confessed, yawning midway through her sentence.

Cassi pulled off her shoes one by one, her focus entirely on the bed. She stripped off her sweater and necklace before collapsing onto the bed. She wrapped her arms around a pillow and wiggled around until she was more settled. However, something was missing. She popped her eyes open and stared at Nic, silently waiting for him.

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Avery watched the couple wander off, Nic being towed along by Cassi. Avery chuckled to himself before Kimiko stole his attention back. He grinned at her before brushing his nose against hers and shut his eyes.

”Do you think?” Without further prompt, Avery leaned to the side and scooped Kimiko into his arms. He held her bridal style with one arm under her knees and the other behind her back.

”Did you not get much sleep either?” Avery had dozed in and out, preoccupied with making sure Nero was okay and waiting for Caden to come back. Avery didn't think the man was going to be jailed all night, but with what Cassiopeia had revealed, he understood why she left him there overnight.

Avery walked down the hall to Kimiko's room and carried her effortlessly. He shut the door behind him before dumping her into her bed. He grinned once more.

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Caden finally stood after receiving permission from Nero a second time. He elevated his eyes slightly to stare at Nero's slippered feet. He clenched his jaw to keep from smiling at the strangeness of their imp and their words. Caden would happily spend all of eternity making this moment up to Nero as that would mean they were together.

”They did give me something, but it is a task I cannot complete.” Caden finally looked at Nero. Despite the silliness of his mate's outfit, all Caden saw was Nero's eyes and the emotions swirling there. ”I sought answers on how to bring Mundus to me. The demon stated I would have to complete seven tasks in the form of the deadly sins. One of them would require losing two people I care for. I killed the creature before they revealed any more to me,” Caden confessed. The blood on Caden's hands—now dried—started to itch, but he refrained from scratching off the evidence.

After Caden's confession that righteous punishment had been dolled out, his facial expression became distraught.

”I don't know what to do…” Short of marching into Hell himself, Caden was lost in how he was to save his mate.

After discovering the oldest sword Caden held in his collection belonged to Nero, he was convinced Nero was always intended to be his. That they were meant to meet and bring chaos to the world around them, but then he learned Mundus had laid claim to Nero. Caden didn't even stop to think. All he had seen was red, death a whispered promise in his mind.

Caden's eyes shifted to the green-blue glimmer of his dragon as they both agreed to make good on their promise.

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Nic watched with tired humor as his girlfriend got comfortable. He was slow to follow and it took Cassi flopping onto the bed for him to realize he needed to shed some of his clothing too. Hopping a bit, he tugged his shoes off before shedding his pants and socks along with the flannel he wore over his t-shirt. Once clad in briefs and the shirt, he let himself collapse onto the bed next to her.

“It hasn’t been that long for me,” He started to say as he wiggled to spoon the sorceress. “But given all we had to do all night, I feel more exhausted than ever…” Wrapping his arms around her, he buried his nose in her hair and closed his eyes.

A yawn escaped him as Nic settled into his spot. “Next time there’s an all-nighter, I volunteer Caden cleans it up.” He mumbled.

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Kiki squeaked, not expecting to be plucked up like that. Her face quickly grew hot and she wrapped her arms around Avery’s neck so she could bury her face again. “I was in and out a lot…” She murmured into the fabric of his shirt. Even though she knew that he would never drop her, she clung to him like he just might.

So, when she tossed her onto her bed, she fell effortlessly into the pillows and blankets before giving a flat look to Avery’s grin. If anyone looked closely, though, they’d see the hint of a smirk. “Or did you have another idea in mind, you dirty old man?” She teased as she tossed a pillow at him.

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Nero wasn’t able to keep up any sort of facade. They felt exhausted and, quite frankly, a bit dissociated by all of the events. They shifted uncomfortably where they stood, recognizing that specific summoning ritual. It was something they had come across in one of their books still in Hell, which meant that there was literature on the demonic prince. “That makes two of us…” They spoke softly and let the words trail off as their gaze fell onto Caden’s hands.

“You need a bath.” Was their simple observation before meeting the eyes of their mate… If they could even call Caden that at the moment. With a small sigh, they grabbed one of the dragon’s large hands and began pulling them into the house. “You look like shit, by the way.”

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Cassiopeia watched Nic as he hopped around, while removing his clothing. She imagined a bird hopping around to gather food and couldn’t help the giggle that bubbled to the surface. She buried her head into the pillow just as Nic collapsed onto the bed. Her giggling continued when Nic pulled her in close before burying his face into her head. Cassi’s tired giggling subsided, and she sighed. She wrapped a hand around Nic’s, holding it securely in hers while they cuddled in the bed.

Cassi yawned and stretched before she felt more relaxed. She shut her eyes, mumbling an affirmation to Nic’s statement before she followed up with a mumbled goodnight in Mandarin. The warm embrace of Nic’s arms and the bed's comfort allowed Cassi to fall asleep quickly.

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The grin that formed from Kimiko clinging to Avery was effortless. It reinforced the idea that he was who she sought after when afraid—even though Avery was currently responsible for her slight fear. Once he deposited her onto the bed, Avery could see Kimiko hadn’t truly minded how Avery had picked her up without warning.

His eyes danced, mirroring the look in Kimiko’s eyes as she tried to keep the silent smirk from them. He barked a laugh at her next statement, surprising himself with how freely he laughed despite the intense emotion that had settled in the house.

”I'm always thinking about that, my dear, but I confess I am in favour of sleep as well.” Avery removed his sweater, revealing that he wore nothing underneath, then removed his joggers. He crawled onto the bed clad only in his briefs, and wrapped an arm around Kimiko’s waist. Avery kissed the side of her head before he laid down with her as his hostage. He breathed in the comforting scent of her: fire, honey, pine, and whatever soap she used.

”I mean, unless you are thinking about it, too…” Avery grumbled, his whispered words gently brushing across Kimiko’s neck.

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A myriad of emotions still rode on the surface, slowly eroding away the little control Caden had regained. Although he was drained from staying in that iridium-filled cell all night, the urge to protect those he claimed as his was strong. That urge only seemed to grow as Nero approached Caden.

The dragon suddenly felt like a caged animal, and he debated bolting from Nero until he was worthy of being in the imp’s presence again when Nero simply took Caden’s hand and led him inside their home. The fire drained from Caden’s eyes instantly, and he obediently followed Nero.

Once the door to the house was shut and locked, that urge to avenge and protect quietened. Everyone he cared for currently resided within his home, safer than any of them could be if they remained in their own homes. Caden shut his eyes, trusting the direction of his imp, and breathed in slowly as he grounded himself.

After Caden reopened his eyes, that familiar confidence and mischievous glimmer that Nero seemed to bring out in him returned. Of course, there was a lingering exhaustion there, mixed with worry for the stress Caden had brought to Nero.

You look like shit by the way… Nero’s words brought a faint smile to his face. Caden dropped his eyes to look at their joined hands.

”Spending the night in a cell full of iridium does that. Not that I didn’t deserve it,” he said, looking back at Nero in the hopes that his imp would have some sort of righteous comeback. Caden knew it was the least he deserved. Between hurting Cass and Nero, Caden was certain he was in for years of repentance—if any could be achieved.

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The sound of his laughter brought her smile out and she beamed at him as he got comfortable. Avery’s scent enveloped her again as he crawled into bed and pulled her close to him. “Sleep does sound nice…” She murmured as the two of them got comfortable. The brush of his lips on her neck made her squirm, a soft giggle escaping her lips.

“Such a one-track mind!” Kiki teased, shaking her head.

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Nero spared a glance behind them at Caden, concern flickering in their eyes. “I…” An expression of mischief mixed with rage crossed the imp’s face before they replaced it with a roll of their eyes.

“Yes, well, tell the piggy that I appreciate his endeavor to properly torture you.” They turned back to continue walking, hand still holding onto the dragon’s tightly. Nero didn’t want to admit that they hadn’t realized Caden could be hurt… Not by humans at least.

Once they arrived at their shared room, the two cats came bolting out to wrap around the two’s ankles. Loud meows of protest were heard as Luci and Mika told the couple that they hadn’t enjoyed being cooped up in the room for this long.

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”Well, ya. If you had a girlfriend as hot as mine, I'm positive that would always be on your mind as well,” he declared.

Avery brushed a kiss along the back of Kimiko's neck before he yawned. He sighed and tucked her head under his chin.

”I feel like I could sleep for two days,” he mumbled.

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Caden's hand tightened around Nero's when he saw the concern flit across their face. He wanted to stop, to pull Nero in and bury his face into their neck. Caden took a step closer to Nero, reading to react to the teasing and the concern when the sounds of mewing pulled him back.

Caden looked down as the cats wound themselves around their legs. Caden chuckled and knelt down, his hand still grasping Nero's securely.

”Do you think they'll sleep with us tonight? Or terrorize the house?” he asked absentmindedly. Caden scratched and petted both of them before he looked up at Nero.