Becoming Fae

I wasn’t sure what I was expecting Greed to look like. Huge eyes were not on the list of attributes, though. And by huge, I mean they were enormous. Not obviously so at first, but when he saw my wings... It was unnerving, just like when Tony showed off his oversized mouth.

“I hope you found my gift to your liking,” Greed smirked. “I heard you were looking for it.”

“Her name is Ambrosia,” I said with a hard look. “And how did you hear that?”

“You would be most remiss not to have spies, young queen,” he replied. “I hoard all things, including information.”

“Then you know you could have just sent her to Gluttony, since he’s the one who asked me to take her,” I said, crossing my arms.

“But sending... her to you was more advantageous,” he smiled.

“That remains to be seen. You wanted this meeting, Greed. What is it you wanted to talk about?” I asked.

“My little brother might seem like a suitable ally, but he lacks the capacity to stand against our other siblings,” Greed said.

“I’m aware,” I nodded.

“I wish to offer my services to the most likely candidate and as of now, that appears to be you,” he said.

“Flattering assessment.”

“But not by much. You may have a chance against Envy, but Wrath is another matter entirely,” he pointed out. “I doubt that your... lesser demons will last longer than a minute in a battle.”

“I’m also aware of that. If you’re going to tell me things I already know, I’ll just go ahead and leave. You’re wasting my time,” I sighed.

He smirked and snapped his fingers. A spark of fire and some smoke later, there was a book in his hand that he held out towards me.

“This has been the bane of existence for the past two thousand years,” he said. “A curse, acquired when I first procured it has rendered me unable to deny giving the next true ruler anything they want, beginning with this book.”

“How unpleasant that must be for you,” I said dryly, taking the book.

“It is my nature to hoard. To say it is unpleasant would be an understatement,” he said bitterly.

“Why is this important?” I asked, opening the book and seeing the red and blue words that looked like my tattoos.

“I believe it to be the personal diary of one High Priestess Netiri Devinia Vespero,” he said. “I’ve tried many times to open it, but each time it proves to be impossible. The last time I tried to force it to open, it burned me.”

He held up his hand and pushed his sleeve back, revealing a large burn scar that went nearly to his elbow.

“Clearly, it’s divine,” Naz snorted. “If you suspected that it was the diary of Netiri, surely you wouldn’t have foolish enough to think it wouldn’t hurt you.”

“I had protection,” Greed replied bitterly.

“Clearly not enough,” Naz scoffed.

“Clearly,” Greed snapped, pulling his sleeve back down.

“So, if I asked for an army?” I asked.

“You have mine,” he gritted out. “It’s one of the largest, save for the Legions.”

“Interesting,” I mused, flipping a few pages in the book. “I may need that eventually, but not at this exact moment. I need information on Wrath and Envy.”

“Envy is easily provoked but vicious. You should be wary of her and her tricks. She’s not above using dishonest means to achieve her goals, even by demon standards,” Greed said. “I don’t suggest going after her until you’re completely ready to face Wrath, because as much as he tires of her antics, he is quite possessive of her.”

“No, Fae. They aren’t related by genetics,” Naz rolled his eyes when I made a face.

“Thank the gods for that,” I muttered and shook myself.

“While Envy should be easy enough to dispatch, Wrath will not be,” Greed continued. “Not once you kill Envy, and you will need to because she’ll be the one trying the hardest to kill you in order to claim the Infernal Throne. When Wrath is in the grips of his nature, he becomes nearly unstoppable. All Sins are stronger when our nature takes over.”

“Which makes Envy more of a constant threat,” Mal said thoughtfully.

“Tell me about the Throne. Where is it, exactly and is there a way to reach it that isn’t conspicuous?” I asked.

“It’s in the Infernal Palace and that is the current lair of Wrath and Envy. So, no. I don’t believe inconspicuous will work,” Greed replied. “They know the queen has come, so they won’t be leaving the Throne unguarded for you to take. We knew an heir was likely to happen, but we never assumed it would, so none of us are prepared for it, but that won’t be the case for much longer. Your best option is to act sooner than later.”

“Then I’ll need that army sooner than later,” I replied, putting the book under my arm. “I need a map, as detailed as possible, of the palace and the location of the Throne and any kind of information you can get on the forces protecting it.”

“It will take me three days,” he replied.

“Because I know this is most likely very painful for you, when this is over, if I drop a feather, I’ll give it to you,” I told him, and his eyes went large again. “But only if it falls naturally, so it’s no longer connected to me.”

“Very generous, your highness,” Greed smiled widely and bowed deeply.

“Cross her, and I’ll visit your nightmares, Sin,” Naz growled.

“A Celestial feather is worth an army in gold. One as unique as those makes this curse bearable,” Greed nodded.

“I prefer my armies in something more durable than gold,” I said flatly.

“And so, it shall be, my queen,” he smiled.

-----

“I wish to meet Ambrosia,” Harmon said as soon as I returned from the meeting with Greed.

“Um... Okay?” I blinked. “I was planning on introducing her to everyone later today.”

“Now, please,” he said, and I looked at him, completely confused.

“Why the rush?” I asked him, frowning.

Harmon opened his mouth then snapped it closed as his face flushed red and his feathers shook themselves. It was kind of adorable, honestly.

“I see,” I chuckled.

“What do you see?” he asked, his head canting to the side slightly. “I did nothing, and I said less.”

“You don’t have to,” I giggled. “But you have to wait until dinner. I think it might be less pressure for her if there’s some sort of a distraction available as an exit plan if she gets overwhelmed. Apparently, Greed kept her secluded from literally everyone but himself and one imp.”

“Monstrous creature,” he muttered.

“Agreed, but there’s not much I can do about it at the moment aside from making sure she’s comfortable while she remains with us,” I answered.

“You’re still giving her to the other Sin?” he asked.

“Not unless that’s what she wants to do,” I answered. “Currently, it is not, so, no. I also don’t plan to stop her if she decides to leave, though I have asked she remain here until I can smooth things over with Tony. I’m not sure what his reaction will be when I inform him that she’s here and I have no intention of following our agreement, but I doubt it’ll be good. At least here, if he decides to take it out on her, she’ll have some small modicum of protection.”

“Were I able to, I would smite him myself should he try,” Harmon said darkly, making me lift an eyebrow at him.

“That’s not at all scary or terrifying,” I muttered and shook my feathers out. “Having been on the receiving end of your attempted smiting, I am once again grateful that you are no longer my enemy.”

“I cannot smite. It is a skill only the most powerful of our priests can do, though I did witness such an event recently,” he said, looking at me with a new kind of look that was both fear and awe. “You were at the center of it, if I’m not mistaken.”

I held up the book and pinched the bridge of my nose.

“That feels... almost divine,” he frowned, his hand hovering near it.

“A gift from Greed. Apparently, he took it and was cursed to be unable to stop himself from giving the next true ruler anything they needed,” I explained. “He suspected it was the personal diary of High Priestesses Netiri Something Something-or-other.”

“Netiri Devinia Vespero?!” he grabbed my shoulders.

“That sounds right,” I said slowly. “Is that... important?”

“She’s only the most powerful High Priestess in the entire history of my kind!” he shook my slightly.

“Oh. She’s the one that was Bonded to Immail. She’s my super great-grandmother,” I said.

“That’s impossible,” he looked confused. “She was married to-.”

“I don’t want names,” I said darkly held up a hand. “I think you might need to come with me. There’s another diary you should probably read.”