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Most, if not all Dustlings and creatures alike were "punks" to her. It didn't help the fact that Silas, literally rubbed her the wrong way. She was already pissed off beyond reason at the idea of losing Eden.

"Fine!" She huffed, "Leave then! See if I care!" She turned her body away from his, eyes staring off into the opposite distance. Her thin arms folded in against her as she sat on her hind legs. With her head held high, she acted as if she didn't care.

Surely if she had lips, they would be quivering right now as she held back the tears. Her pride, once again, got in the way. Maybe if this were a movie, or maybe if she were a bit more...normal she'd apologize and ask the male dustling to wait...but Layla was definitely far from normal.

The night had gotten unusually cold rather quickly. Winds were blowing at maybe 15-20mph, making it rather difficult to walk. His golden eyes squinted against the heavy winds while he angled himself to brace against the winds. Certainly, his kind was a bit on the lighter side to allow flight, but Lucid was no light-weight for sure. As he trudged on, he never expected to see another outside in such heavy weather. Surely his eyes were deceiving him. No normal creature would want to be caught in this drastic weather change unless he or she wanted to literally become one with the sky.

Not long after the male dustling left, the weather took on a dramatic change. Winds starting blowing at such a fast rate it made the trees bend in ways they’d prefer not to be bent in. Even so, Layla remained in the same position as she was before the dustling left. Her arms were no longer folded, and her posture slouched forward a little. Something was a little...different though, aside from her posture that is. Sounds like a baby’s wailing came from her general direction. No other living creature aside from trees and the like were around her...it was pretty obvious where the sounds came from.

She hadn’t thought Eden’s absence would affect her so profoundly. He was just a "stupid little dust who had wings and a halo". He was supposed to be her toy. Maybe her favorite toy, but certainly not one she should get so emotional over. Her appearance was surely a laughable one. The tough demoness who valued her pride greatly (perhaps more than anything) with tears racing down her cheeks, beak open wide with wailing-like sounds equivalent to a baby’s...Even Eden would probably laugh at her if he saw this.

At first he thought the wailing was from the wind. The two sounded a bit similar if it weren’t for the fact that he saw the purple demoness far away in the distance. Could the noise be coming from her? But demons are supposed to be strong...emotional creatures filled with rage.

Lucid couldn’t help but second guess himself. The only way to find out was to approach the demoness carefully. He wouldn’t want to end up as a pile of bloody feathers tonight of all nights. Yes, being an angel meant he had already died once, but he was no cat. After this life surely nothing more awaited him than a peaceful (or bloody) slumber.

Carefully trying to make his presence known, he stood just out of claw’s reach of the demoness. His tail was in a downward position, showing submission. Clearing his throat, he asked, “Miss Demon, on all nights why would a lady such as yourself be out in such weather? I am surprised you have not yet been swept away by the strong winds. I, myself, am having a bit of trouble trying to keep myself from becoming a part of the sky. Now, if you don’t mind me intruding; what seems to be the problem?”

A sharp glare turned toward the blue angel. The tears stopped almost as instantly as they started. With a deep breath, she answered his question, “None of your business! Go away or I’ll make you become a part of the earth.”

She raised a claw, mimicking the t(hroat slicing motion often seen in movies.

“Now scram!”

Sighing, he shook (his head side to side in disapproval. He was only trying to help.

“Not trying to embarrass you...but you were very clearly crying; or more like wailing. You sounded like a banshee from far away. If you don't wish to talk about it; fine. But clearly you're upset over something. Surely a demoness such as yourself would not cry over trivial matters such as a ruined sand castle. If you wish to talk about it, I will lend you an ear. Either way, I suggest the both of us find some shelter soon before the rain starts pouring down."

His eyes briefly glanced at the darkening sky. Flashes of lightning jumped through the clouds.

"Suit yourself." He said sternly before walking away from her. For a brief moment, he glanced back at the demoness before making his way toward some shelter. He only glanced once.

Humph. That sky-colored angel can go find himself a nice little hole to dry up if he wanted to. This demoness wasn't going to follow him. She'll find a place of her own. Depending on others is for the weak. Look where placing her trust in Eden led her.

The sky flashed another bright light; shortly after a loud boom followed. She whimpered lightly at the thought of the down pour. Normally she'd yell back at the sky, but right now...she felt so vulnerable. That stupid Eden...That stupid dustling and that stupid angel-dustling too! Everything was stupid!

Another boom roared out from the distance. The rain was definitely coming; and it was coming fast.

There was no way in hell she was going to get caught in that. No way she's freezing her a** out here.

Swallowing her pride, she quickly ran in the same direction Lucid went. However, she didn't swallow that pride of hers quickly enough. Not too soon after she started bolting after the angel, the rain came pouring down.

Shiiiiiiiit!

Just in time. Lucid entered this little cave barely able to fit one and a half of him. Granted, he was a little buff and poofy. Still, if someone else were to try and squeeze in here he had better hope it was a beautiful female angel who was up for some old fashioned warming up; and not the kind with fire either.

The rain was pounding heavily against the ground. Every drop that splattered itself against the sandy ground jumped up a couple inches. It was almost as if it was hailing. Sure felt like it considering Lucid was freezing cold.

He hoped that prideful demoness at least found some safe shelter to pass the storm. Well, it wasn't his problem any more. Out of sight; out of mind.

The angelic dustling groomed his feathers shortly before laying down. His feet were tucked in, almost like a hen incubating her eggs. Slowly, his bright eyes winked less and less, until they closed entirely.

Suddenly, a loud, pleading voice shook him to waking. Startled by the voice, he jumped up with his feathers poofed out in defense-mode. He seemed to have a rather unexpected guest.

She came to a screeching halt right before the cave entrance. He seemed as if he was enjoying himself; sheltered from the rain.

This was one of the things she hated doing most, but she wanted to stay out of the rain. She also wanted some company, but she would never admit that ever in her entire life.

Pleadingly, with a strange mix of yelling in her voice, "Hey! It's really pouring out here! Can you...let me in? Just until the storm passes? I'll try not to...touch you." The tone of her voice on the word "touch" almost sounded like she was disgusted by the thought of it.

Lucid was taken aback by her strange mixture of emotions. "Uh...Sure...Come on in. Suit yourself." He raised a brow at her as she entered the cave. "The cave is kind of small, so if we if my feathers and your feather-fur touches then no big deal," he shrugged.

She glared intently at his words. If glares could kill, she certainly had one that could.

Layla settled down within the cave, making herself as comfortable as she could while trying to stay as close to the walls of the cave as possible. Wouldn't want their feathers/feather-fur to touch.

All this must've been rather exhausting...Her eyelids felt heavy as she started to drift off. At first, she tried to fight it, only prevailing for a couple minutes before drifting off completely.

Any defense she hoped to put up was lost entirely. Probably any pride, too. She might've felt it, but she certainly didn't try to fight it.

How cute he smirked while thinking to himself. She was leaning up against him, snuggling closer and closer to him. Probably partially for the warmth, but mostly for the company. He assumed she must've had quite the shitty day if she was like this. It was amusing, though.

Slowly, he too, started nodding off. With one wing wrapped around the shivering demoness, the odd couple drifted off to sleep...

Storms were always a boon for this demon. Not even the proverbial medley of voices in his head could stand against mother nature's wrath. He'd spent the entire night outside, staring up as lightning streaked across the sky, letting the sheets of rain wash over him. That time had been spent in a daze, eyes glazed over an unseen, as his thoughts were turned inward. Time spent alone in his own head was at a premium as of late, and he was gonna take all he could get.

In the early hours of the morning as the sun rose and the storm passed on he'd finally dosed off. It was only a few ours later when he awoke, the morning sun high in the sky and doing it's darnedest to try and dry his thoroughly drenched form. He rose slowly to his feet and shook his fur out. Despite the lack of real sleep and his current drenched state, he had to fight the urge to chase after the storm.

It was only after he gave himself a few minutes to wake up and shake the cobwebs from his head did he realize that something felt off....

No matter.

With a roar-like yawn he stretched his limbs out, and in a rare moment of vanity brushed down his wet fur that had spiked up everywhere from the movement. With that accomplished he started off, not that he had any idea of where he was actually going. Being productive was not exactly one of his strong suites.

But dammit, why did he feel so good?

The sound of footfalls was both distracting and enlightening. Only with the sudden noise did he realize what he had before. Silence. No voices. Only sweet, wonderful silence. It was a shame he hadn't noticed it before the volatile demoness had stomped her way closer to him. For the moment he was left to ponder what the lack of voices meant, not caring of the nearby raging female until she approached him. He'd caught a glimpse of her from the corner of his eye and managed to raise a wing as a shield from the sand that had flown at him. There was surprisingly little reaction from such a gesture. He was a demon himself. He'd had his share of tantrums. But while he preferred to remain alone while in a mood, this female clearly had other ideas.

When she'd actually called out to him, he decided to grace her with his attention and made a show of turning around to face her properly. He drew himself up to his full height and peered down at her with a hint of annoyance he didn't really feel. He wasn't a very well kept dustling. His fur was still damp and stuck up in various places and he wasn't the most well built, but he was certainly taller than most; perhaps a head and a half taller than other demons.

The itch of the wet sand clinging to his wing finally got to him and with an annoyed snort (which sounded more like a sigh) he removed it with a quick flick of his wing. He thought about flicking it right back at her, but she wasn't in a pleasant mood and if he angered her he would be in for a headache, that much was clear. Turning his attention back to her, his icy blue eyes all but glared down at her.

"And what do you want?" He tried to sound annoyed but it came out more long suffering than anything.

Contrary to all the posturing, all this demon wanted was a little peace and quiet, now that he could actually have it without the peanut gallery in his head. It was not to be apparently, if this fuming female had anything to say about it. The growl blossoming in the back of his throat hinted otherwise for his response.

It was the next spray of sand and her words that actually sparked a physical response this time around.

Having seen it his wing rose once again to block the sand and he closed the distance between the two of them with a couple quick strides. He hunched over, his head swiveling lower so he could meet the demoness eye-to-eye at her own level. Oddly enough, everything from the sharp tilt of his head, to his hunched up body and coiled tail seemed more serpentine than draconic.

For a moment he simply stared into the female's eyes, his own eventually narrowing to chips of ice. Suddenly he grinned, fangs barred in a scant imitation of the usual pleasant gesture. Such aggressiveness was usually absent in this particular demon, but something had sparked it and he wasn't gonna hold it back.

"So," His tone was infinitely more pleasant and friendly, a stark contrast to his actions. "You really want to fight me?"

'This is absolutely ludicrous.'

It was a faint voice inside his head that spoke, and Zen could barely recognize it as his own conscious, something he could never hear over the dull roar of the voices that had plagued him. He was far from a nice guy, he was a demon! But even so he didn't go around picking fights for no damn reason. Sure, the occasional rough and tumble with other males who thought they could tell him what to do, or tried to kick him out of an area when he was hunting. But this was totally different.

He was busy trying to talk himself down from this situation, 'Just fly away and let her find something else to take her anger out on,' when he was suddenly met with a face full of sand. He'd managed to close his eyes in the nick of time to avoid being blinded, but the damage had already been done. Shaking his head to rid himself of the sand he opened his eyes again and fixed the smaller female with a look.

Conscious be damned this woman was pissing him off. He was quick to silence the little voice in the back of his mind telling him not to fall for it, and snarled in response to her actions.

"Fine, fine," he growled as he crouched down slightly, balancing with one fore-claw firmly on the ground. "Just don't go cryin' to mommy and daddy when I tear up that pretty face of yours." He watched her for a moment longer, folding his wings behind him tightly. She didn't seem perturbed at all, either she knew what she was doing, or had no clue at what the hell she'd gotten herself into.

With all said and done, he bared his fangs and lunged.

Whatever her reasons may have been, Zenith was far from the point of caring. In fact had the demoness come at him any other way all she would've gotten was a cold shoulder, maybe a few blunt remarks if he was feeling generous. No. Instead she'd done the only thing that would've caught his attention. He could only hope, somewhere in the back of his mind, that whatever reasons she had they were worth what was about to go down.

Because now she had his full attention.

In hindsight an all out lunge was probably not the wisest of choices when his opponent was clearly faster than him. Still she wouldn't be able to get him so easily. It was a rather common response to a frontal strike and he'd seen it coming like he had in similar situations, so he quickly ducked his head down.

What he failed to take in to account was the size difference. Most of his opponents were male and much larger, therefore centered a little higher up. His ducking maneuver would've worked fine had that been the case, but Layla was smaller and struck a bit lower than he had anticipated. She didn't get his face, but her claws glanced off his horns instead. He suddenly jerked his head up and sideways in response. Whether it was intentional to try and catch her claws in his horns, or a simple reaction to the contact was yet to be seen.