Chapter Text
The weather outside of the courthouse was cloudy, and for a very rare occasion, Stolas could practically smell that it was going to rain in Wrath. Heat still radiated off the cracked pavement outside the courthouse, making the suit Stolas had donned feel stifling and uncomfortable with the added layer of bandaging around his shoulder and leg, holding feathers dampened in sweat uncomfortably against his skin.
It was hard to keep his head held high when he walked with a slight limp from the damage done to his still healing leg, and although the pain he was in was far from ideal, he needed to be wary of what medications he could take now that he was gravid. They’d gotten incredibly lucky with the fact he hadn’t miscarried after yesterday’s events, and he didn’t want to take any chances that might compromise the lives of their two littlest ones again.
“Stolas, we can wait for him inside,” Vassago said as he ushered Stolas further up the steps to the courthouse. "Reporters are already showing up. Realmente no quiero que te vean esos buitres. Ándale. (I don’t want you seen by those vultures. Get moving.) ”
Stolas did as told, his crimson eyes lingering on the busy street for a final moment before the doors closed behind them. “He promised he would be here.” Stolas responded nervously as his brother began to lead him to a private room where they could look everything over before the trial.
“And he will be,” Vassago replied with a casual wave of his hand. “Your little lover will be here soon. I’m sure of it.”
Stolas couldn’t help the uneasy feeling that slowly crept in, unable to shake the sense that something bad was just around the corner. Perhaps it was finally settling in that the divorce trial was actually here, and that things weren’t looking in his favor at the moment; but every moment since yesterday, when Blitzø left the hospital in a hurry, he couldn’t fight the continually growing stress of separation.
Hellborn and more reporters were lined up at the lobby of the building, all being signed in and getting their bags checked before they were given the go ahead to enter. He would be blind to not notice the flashing of cameras from that line of people as his brother ushered him by and further into the building, so many people itching to see the high profile case after the assassination attempt two days prior.
“Stolas!” His attention was caught immediately as his eyes finally landed on the familiar face of his boyfriend, who was waiting far back in the line, packed into the tight lobby like he was a spectator and not actually a part of the case at hand.
“Blitzø!” Vassago called out. “Stolas, stay put.” He patted the owl on his good shoulder gently before making his way to the check in and saying something to one of the people managing the line. The imp his brother spoke to looked over to Blitzø in surprise before she nodded and waved his soulmate over.
Others in the line groaned out in irritation as he weaved through the group, clutching a rather small box of documents to his chest protectively and grumbling as he had to shove past a few unhappy reporters. He passed his brother the box, and they talked for a moment before Blitzø went to turn tail and leave.
“Blitzø! Don’t you dare walk away!” Stolas shouted after his soulmate and completely ignored what his brother requested of him and marched his way over. Only his defiant march was more of an awkward limp given the fact that the wound on his leg made swift movement difficult.
His boyfriend froze in place as more eyes were drawn to them, some of the press taking the opportunity to snap a few photos of the Prince as he grabbed Blitzø’s good arm to prevent him from scampering off into the crowd. “I’ve been waiting to see you all morning.” he said softer before crouching down and pulling his soulmate into his arms.
“Stolas…” Blitzø’s body went rigid before his arms wrapped around the owl hesitantly. “I should really go.”
“Absolutely not.” Stolas held on a little tighter. “Blitzø, I need you here with me today.”
“Please…” his soulmate sounded so small as his fingers bunched up in the fabric of Stolas’ shirt, “When you see what happened, I can’t be around.”
Stolas buried his face into the crook of his neck and took in an unsteady breath. “I died two days ago; please let me be selfish this one time. Whatever it is that I will learn, please Blitzø, stay with me.” His words were quiet, carrying with them the heartbreak of a person who’d had to do everything on his own damn near his whole life.
That was when he heard his boyfriend quietly sniffle as he pressed his face into Stolas’ good shoulder, the fabric dampening with tears. “Stolas…”
Then Vassago began to usher both men away from the crowd of reporters who were snapping as many photos of their embrace as possible. “Perhaps this conversation can happen in a more private place,” he said just low enough that it met their ears only. “I have a room booked for us to go over what to expect with today’s trial.”
Whether Blitzø wanted to stay or not, he very reluctantly let them get led to the room mentioned, his tired expression giving away just how little rest he’d gotten since leaving him in the hospital. The room itself was rather small, nothing like Vassago’s own office a few floors up; large enough for a long, wooden table with a few chairs around it. His brother’s laptop was already set atop it with a few folders neatly stacked beside it. It was at this moment that it finally settled in that the divorce was really, finally happening.
Something that had always seemed like this far off concept now had an actual date on the calendar, and that date was today. The thought filled him with both a wave of excitement, as well as an overwhelming worry as he thought of all the things that may go wrong. He knew he would be losing everything; all he truly cared about at this moment was maintaining custody of his daughter by the end of this whole ordeal.
“Sit, the both of you,” Vassago stated as he locked the door behind them and took a seat in front of his laptop. He set the box Blitzø brought with him next to the folders, and pried the top off before plucking out a stack of photographs, an old newspaper, and another folder full of documents. His brother didn’t seem too surprised by the contents of the folder as he lazily thumbed through it; even humming thoughtfully before setting them down and beginning to type something away on his laptop.
Stolas took a seat across from him and held out his hand to his soulmate. Blitzø took it very hesitantly, his grip weak as he sat down beside him and looked anywhere but him or the new documents now on the table. With his free hand, Stolas plucked the stack of papers from the desk and began to look them over; curious about the contents that seemed to fill his boyfriend with such a large wave of anxiety that he would rather be anywhere but here while he went over them.
Then his eyes caught onto the true nature of the fire that irrevocably changed their lives forever. The thing that killed Blitzø’s mother and crippled his childhood friend. His grip on Blitzø’s hand tightened.
“Blitzø…” His name left Stolas’ beak as he processed everything.
“Do you see now what I was trying to get at in the hospital?” the imp mumbled tiredly. “Don’t throw everything away because of me. I’m not worth it.”
That brought with it a wave of anger that surprised even Stolas. “How could you say such a thing?” he snapped. “Your life is more important than my palace, my legions, or my wealth; the only things I cannot replace are our children and you!”
“How could you see all of that and still say my life is more important than living comfortably with our kids?! I should have died instead of her, and I should die today to protect you—to do one good thing in my life!” Blitzø shouted back, frustrated tears streaming down his face. “I hurt so many people; I fucking killed my mom! You read the documents, Stolas. I’m a fucking monster—how can you say my life means more than all of that!”
Stolas’ heart broke for the man who believed he was unworthy of love, but his words only strengthened his resolve. “It was a fucking accident, Blitzø!” he urged, because there was no way his boyfriend would have willingly set that fire.
“How would you know—“
“Did you mean to set that fire?” Stolas asked, voice quieting down as he noticed how his brother’s attention shifted from his laptop over to the bickering couple.
“No, of course not!”
“Then it was an accident.” Stolas pressed as he closed the distance between them and hugged the imp tight in his arms despite the awkwardness of the chairs in the way. “Blitzø, it was an accident. This doesn’t mean you’re undeserving of love, and you cannot punish yourself forever for it.” He pressed his face into the collar of his shirt. “You’re so ready to leave this world, yet hadn’t once thought of what that would have done to our family. Don’t ever say you’ve done nothing good in your life.” He held him tighter and sniffled. “You saved Loona and freed so many others that day you busted the trafficking ring she was in. Octavia has never been happier and needs you in her life. I’m still alive because of you–our other kids are still developing because of you. You’re my light, Blitzø. I cannot live without you again; I’ve only just gotten you back.”
“You wouldn’t understand Stolas.” Blitzø’s body was rigid, but Stolas refused to let him run away from this. “You didn’t kill your mom.”
“But I did, didn’t I?” Stolas responded, because it was true. She hadn’t been healthy enough to have him and live through the struggle of carrying and laying an egg. Had he not been born, she would still be here today.
Blitzø tried to pull away and lashed his tail in frustration. “That’s not the same! You didn’t mean to!”
“And neither did you!” Stolas lessened his hold to give him space, but held his hand firmly so he couldn’t run. “You’re a parent now, so you have to understand. Do you really think your mother would have wanted you to die so soon? Because you’ve been punishing yourself for an accident? Or would she want you to live your life and be happy? Have a family?”
Blitzø’s hand gripped his tighter, the one with Stolas’ soulmark, and the one where his own once was, his expression a mess of hurt and hope and fear.
“Please, Blitzø,” he urged. “Let us have this chance, wherever this may take us, whatever roof is over our heads, I don’t care so long as you’re there beside me. I need you. Our children need you.”
Blitzø’s expression shifted to something more hesitant, a little more open. “You could do so much better than me,” he said lamely.
Stolas’ grip on his hand tightened. “Vassago, I do apologize, but would you please be able to give us a moment alone?” he asked, eyes never leaving his soulmate.
His brother was quiet for a moment before agreeing. “I’ll go get some coffee from the cafe across the street and be back shortly.” The parrot demon closed his laptop with a quiet click before getting up and leaving the room, giving the two the space they needed.
Once he was certain his brother was far enough away from the room, Stolas finally responded sternly, “You don’t get to decide that for me. You’ve said it yourself before; never once in my life have I been given the privilege of choosing anything for its trajectory. Now that I’m free to do as I please, for the first time in my life, I’m making a decision for myself. I love you so much, Blitzø, and I would want nothing more than to be by your side and raise our children together. That’s my choice, that’s my decision. You don’t get to take that away from me.” He swallowed thickly before asking, “What is it you want, Blitzø?”
After a moment of tense eye contact, Blitzø finally responded, “I want that too.” His voice was choked with emotion. Stolas cupped the side of his face and held it tenderly; he was his light, hesitating for only a moment, giving Blitzø an out should he choose it, then kissed him.
Their mouths slotted together perfectly, because they were a perfect match for each other. Picked specifically by fate, compatibility completely flawless. His soulmate sank into the kiss, his rigid body relaxing as he carded the fingers of his free hand through the feathers on the side of his face, his thumb gently caressing the line of the scar on his cheek. Blitzø pulled away and kissed him again, and a third time; as if the first kiss wasn’t enough to convey his desire. Stolas couldn’t help but smile into their kiss before he parted his beak and deepened it, letting their tongues meet in a passionate makeout.
Stolas could more than feel that this should stop now, before it escalated too far and they found their way into each other’s pants; but after everything that happened the past few days, Stolas felt as though a quickie before a very turbulent trial later today was a fair need.
He let his hands wander down his soulmate’s chest, teasing his nipples through the fabric of his shirt before traveling further down to unbutton and unzip his pants before eagerly palming his cock through his briefs.
Blitzø broke the kiss and murmured against his beak, “You sure this is a good idea?”
“A quickie after the past two days is well deserved,” he answered before going to do the same for his own pants and standing up to kick them off before climbing onto his lap and pulling his soulmate’s cock out. “I need you inside me,” he decided, eyes staring down at Blitzø with burning desire, an expression matched by the other man before he sank down on his cock and began to ride him as his life depended on it.
The room was filled with the sound of moaning, mixed with the wet smack of slick feathers against skin as their pace quickened to something more frantic and brutal. “Oh–oh fuck–” Stolas’ breath caught in his throat as he lost himself to the tight stretch of his cloaca around his soulmate’s thick cock plunging inside him. This needed to be quick, before his brother returned, so he did nothing to fight the quickly growing wave of pleasure that always built up right before the crescendo of an orgasm would overcome him.
Blitzø’s hands slipped around Stolas’ waist and firmly gripped his ass, clawed fingers digging into the meat of it as he bucked his hips up into the movement of the owl. It was perfect, the feeling of being wanted, that his body could bring his soulmate that same pleasure.
The pain radiating from his leg wound was ignored for the moment, only adding to the delicious pleasure he was feeling as they fucked. He dipped his head down and re-captured Blitzø’s mouth in a searing kiss, letting their tongues work together with a desperation fervor; a release of all their pent up need and stress that grew exponentially since Stolas’ abduction.
When the kiss broke, Blitzø spoke, “I’m close–where do you want me to cum?”
Stolas smirked almost devilishly before responding, “You’ve already knocked me up; why don’t you give me a reminder of how you did it?”
Blitzø’s grip tightened, and his eyes fell to Stolas’s flat stomach, showing no signs of the pregnancy just yet, but the knowledge that he was carrying twins—their children—softened something about his expression. Stolas was pregnant, and although sex was a key component of that fact, it was ultimately their love for each other that allowed it to happen in the first place. It was undeniable proof that Stolas loved him, no matter how undeserving the imp may have felt of it; that fact would never change, and Stolas would always need him in his life.
Then one of Blitzø’s hands came around his hip and his diligent fingers began to play with Stolas’ sensitive clit, a teasing, circular motion that finally had him cumming hard and clenching his vent tight around his soulmate’s cock. It was followed quickly by the feeling of Blitzø’s cock throbbing and his hot cum spilling out deep inside him. He hunkered down and continued to grind his clit into his soulmate’s touch, chasing any last dregs of pleasure before it veered into overstimulation.
“Blitzy…” Stolas murmured softly as he cupped the other man’s face tenderly and angled it upwards so he could look into his eyes. “Whatever may come of today, Blitzy, please know that we all need you to stay.” He kissed the mark on his forehead gently before resting his against it, “I will always need you to stay. I love you so fucking much.”
“You’re sure?” His voice was quiet, hesitant, yet held in it a small glimmer of hope.
“Without a shadow of doubt. I cannot be without you. Not again.” He kissed him again. “Never again.”
Then there was a knock at the door and the sound of a clearing throat. “As lovely as all that is,” Vassago called out from the other side. “Are you done fucking? We do actually need to go over everything before the trial starts.”
Stolas’ face heated up and he looked down at their hips, his soulmate’s cock still buried inside him and their mixed cum oozing out around it. “Uhhhh, perhaps give us a moment.”
“Ay mi Satanas (Oh my Satan).” his brother grumbled on the other side of the door. All things considered, Stolas couldn’t bring himself to feel too bad about annoying the parrot. Not when it meant he was able to properly show his soulmate that he was loved still, despite everything that he was blaming himself for.
·༻𐫱༺·
After they were re-dressed and had gone over everything, Stolas felt at peace with what was certain to be lost by the end of the trial. All he cared about was the chance he had at getting full custody of his beloved daughter, and that his soulmate’s life would be preserved. That was all that mattered.
Blitzo had already been directed to the courtroom to take a seat, and the knowledge that his boyfriend would be there to give him quiet support meant everything to him. He could do this.
He was quite taken by surprise when, on their walk to the courtroom, he heard Octavia’s little voice call out from the entrance of the courtroom, “Daddy!”
“Via, sweetie!” he called back as she ran from her nanny up to him with her arms raised, “Whatever are you doing here?” He crouched down and scooped her up, despite the screaming pain in his shoulder and leg. He set her easily on his hip and fussed over her head feathers while she was here, his beak setting them in place better and causing her to giggle at the contact.
“Well, it is a custody hearing,” Vassago pointed out. “And although she’s only four, her input on the matter can be very influential.”
“And where is Loona?” Stolas asked their approaching nanny, Tilly, who reached up to take his daughter off his hands so he could enter the courtroom.
“She is with Moxxie and Millie, your highness,” she answered as Octavia sat nervously on her hip. “We are requested to wait in a room until Princess Octavia is to take the stand.”
“And where are they?” he followed up, feeling a stress creeping up his spine at the thought of his eldest, and the uncertainty of her location given the events of the prior several days.
“I believe at your boyfriend's apartment, your highness.”
It’s not great, but it’s better than not knowing entirely. He would be inclined to say he’d prefer her to be at his own estate, but given the fact he’d been abducted from there to begin with, Stolas wasn’t feeling particularly confident in her safety there either. Especially now that Striker’s whereabouts were still uncertain.
“Thank you,” Stolas responded and let out a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding in. “Via sweetie, I shall see you soon. I love you, my little star fire.” he added as Vassago ushered him through the threshold of the massive double doors leading directly into Satan’s court. It was hard not to feel intimidated in the large room with Satan’s giant and imposing figure looming over him from his throne. He curiously took in the many stories of seats encircling the room, separated by the floor Stolas walked by a fiery pit of lava, where nearly every member of the arse Goetia, his own father included.
Stolas kept his back straight and his expression serious and focused as he locked eyes with the man he was unfortunate enough to call his father, those shady eyes looking down at him disapprovingly. It wouldn’t be the first time his actions displeased his father, and given the trajectory of the trial, it certainly wouldn’t be the last either.
As he came to their respective tables, Stolas’ attention shifted to the woman who would soon be his ex-wife. Her own beak was pulled into a satisfied smile, knowing full well the cards were stacked in her favor. Then, over her shoulder, his attention snapped to the man who apparently had loads of pornographic material of Stolas and his soulmate having sex. Andrealphus’ expression was complex; the proud and smug mask usually in place had cracks in it. Evident in the worried crease of his brow and the inkling of both concern and relief reflected in his eyes. The only thing intact was that same, arrogant smile.
“Stol-ass,” Stella sneered as he stood before Satan with his head held high.
His eyes lingered on her for a moment, and instead of giving into her obvious taunt, he nearly gave her a disinterested look before facing the Sin of Wrath himself. Satan really was every bit the intimidating figure Stolas had heard about from his brother. This was the first time he’d been summoned to appear before him, and although his first instinct was screaming out at him that he should put as much distance between himself and the Sin as possible, Stolas stood his ground.
Even more intimidating for Stolas, Lucifer himself was making an appearance for this whole ordeal. The King of Hell sat atop the highest point in the jury box with the rest of the Sins seated below him. He fiddled with his cane, cooing at the serpent wrapped around it like it was his own child. Curiously enough, his appearance was nearly the opposite of Satan’s. He was small, far smaller than himself, and his soft features made Lucifer appear far less intimidating.
Stolas could recognize in him the look of a father who adored his child more than anything. Had read all about the way he saved his daughter and supported her hotel endeavor. Perhaps with him here, Stolas could play into that, form any sort of connection with the King, and hope that that tipped custody of Octavia in his favor.
The room was full of chatter as focus turned towards himself, the man who’d nearly been assassinated, and perhaps more infamously, the demon prince who was fucking an imp. He was perfectly fine with that title, would wear it with pride even, and felt his beak pull into an easy smile as his attention finally fell on the love of his life.
Blitzø sat comfortably far to Stolas’ left, and those in his section seemed to give him a wide berth, other higher ups appearing to be uncomfortable in the presence of someone of lower station. In his own opinion, Blitzø was more deserving to be there than any other Goetia, the majority of which Stolas knew full well sat on their asses most of the time, and only came out for appearances at parties and large, profile events such as these to give off the appearance of demonic royalty.
“Silence!” Satan’s booming voice echoed in the courtroom as the pits of fire around them floated to life. “We will now begin!” A hushed silence fell over the room; the only sound filling the space was the crackling of the fires that licked up from the mote around them, as if feeding off the tension present in the room.
“Prince Stolas of the Ars Goetia, you stand before us regarding your breaking of the prenuptial agreement you signed at the start of your marriage to your wife. As such, you stand to lose all of your possessions in the proceeding divorce. Is that correct?”
Stolas looked to his brother, who simply gave him a curt nod. “That is correct, your honor. I stand before you taking full accountability for my own actions, and do not care for my assets. The only thing I aim to fight for is the custody of my daughter, Princess Octavia.” His voice was steady and confident. The declaration caused a wave of murmuring around the room, members of his family either aghast at the prospect of a Prince willing to live in a life of squalor for the custody of his child, or impressed that he stood by his actions so firmly.
“I do believe that our daughter is one of our shared assets,” Stella called out haughtily, “Therefore, full custody should reside with me.”
“Can we really trust such a disgraceful man to raise my darling niece?” Andrealphus added. “He’s gone and cheated on my sister, and with an imp no less. What kind of example is that setting for a still developing mind? What kind of ideas might that be putting in her head?”
Stolas frowned deeply at them, barely containing an angry chitter at the remark. “Who I have relations with holds no bearing on my ability to parent my child.”
“It does when the party in question was scraped off the bottom of the barrel,” Andrealphus responded, tone antagonizing as he watched his brother-in-law carefully with an arched brow. “What kind of ideas would that put in the girl’s head? The class lines are there for a reason, and sleeping with an imp just shows us your true integrity. Let alone allowing one to hold so much power over you in the bedroom.”
Stolas’ brow furrowed, and his glare intensified. “What the fuck is that supposed to mean?”
The peacock's smile turned devious before he gestured lazily to a screen that made an appearance where everyone could see it. “Play the footage.”
The courtroom went dead silent as a sex tape played out for the judge, jurors, and the entirety of the Goetia family—including his father. Of course, Stolas knew something like this might happen; it was an officially submitted piece of evidence, and given the nature of their prenuptial agreement, it did count as undeniable proof of his breaking of it. And given Stella and Andrealphus’ affinity for cruel and unusual punishments, it wasn’t particularly surprising.
What Stolas wasn’t expecting was for the video picture quality to be shot in uncensored 4K with clear audio.
“Ohh~ ohhh fuck Blitzø!”
Stolas could hear himself cry out as he was face down, ass up in his bed, with his arms tied behind his back, getting railed from behind by his boyfriend.
“Fuck just like that! Fuck my tight little cunt with your fat juicy cock—“
“Objection!” Vassago shouted. “This is clearly being shown for the intended purpose of humiliating my brother and his lover! Other submitted evidence already proves his infidelity! We don’t need to be showing this!” He tried to get the video stopped, but the stunned curiosity of the courtroom seemed not to care.
Even Satan looked on with perturbed intrigue as he watched an unlikely pair fuck like horny college students.
“I second that.” Asmodeus called out from where he sat, “This is clearly revenge porn; I don’t see the point in letting this continue to play out.” The Sin of Lust’s frown was deep, eyes focused on the screen sympathetically before turning his irritation to Lucifer, hoping he might stop it too. The King of Hell, of course, had stepped away for the moment, which Andrealphus likely waited for before the reveal of this video.
Stolas’ eyes flickered from the screen then over to where Blitzø sat, also watching the screen slack-jawed. They exchanged mortified looks as the steady clap clap clap of skin hitting wet feathers with every brutal thrust echoed in the room.
“I’m close, where do you want me to cum?”
“Inside! Please! Inside! Give it all to me—fill me up—use my bird pussy like I’m daddy’s little cum dumpster! Ahhhh~ harder! Ram it into me!”
“Where the fuck even was this camera?” Stolas called out and gestured to the screen in outrage. “I believe the point could have been made without an uncensored high definition closeup video of my boyfriend’s cock inside my cloaca! And is the audio really necessary to prove your point?!” He shouted just in time for his on-screen self to cry out in ecstasy and cum hard across the bedsheets and Blitzø’s cock to pull out, leaving his cloaca dripping with his cum before the video ended, screen remaining on that final frame—the money shot. “And at no point have either of us consented to this clear invasion of privacy! There’s collecting evidence, and then there’s whatever the fuck this is! I’ve already stated the truth: I’ve been having an affair with Blitzø for a few months now; I no longer care about keeping the palace and my assets! All I care about is custody of my daughter!”
“What the—why the fuck is that on the screen?!” They heard Lucifer call out, having finally returned. “I leave for the bathroom for not even five minutes and it looks like you were playing a fucking porno!” The Sin of Pride was looking at the screen in disturbed outrage, then to Ozzie.
“Hey! Don’t look at me, I called for the video to not be played.” The Sin of Lust frowned and directed his ire towards Satan. “He let it happen.”
The screen went black, no longer showing the final frame of the sex tape. “I wasn’t the one who played it!” Satan growled out.
“But you still let it be played,” Ozzie tutted. “All I’m sayin’ is just cause it’s official evidence doesn’t mean it needs to be shown publicly like that.”
“We were simply providing evidence we were told we could show in the hearing,” Andrealphus’ voice was smooth and calm because he technically was within his right to show official evidence approved by the court.
Whoever he had to pay off to have it happen must be loaded right now.
Stolas glared at Andrealphus, who was looking at him smugly with a faint blush across his cheeks. “You may use this information as a means to try and humiliate me in front of our peers, fucking go for it! But there is no reason I should lose custody of my daughter for falling in love and wishing to leave a marriage that actively puts her and myself in danger!” he snapped before looking out at the crowd. “Not even a week ago that woman hired a hit man to capture, torture, and murder me; an incident of which got Octavia both shot by a blessed bullet and drugged with a potentially lethal dose of a sedative! Over the past months I have documented every incident of domestic abuse that woman has put me through, and every time she’s threatened to lay hands on our daughter for simply being four! She is very clearly unfit to be a mother, and should she have even partial custody without supervision, I worry what she might do to her!”
“Don’t you dare insinuate that I am an unfit mother, you unfaithful, pitiful faggot! You’re clearly a horrible influence on her if you’re fucking some firetoad, let alone in such a deplorable, pathetic way; letting him do whatever to your body and being his submissive little bitch!”
“I love being his submissive little bitch!” he shouted back, because at this point what did it even matter? All of his dignity went out the door the second that video played. The worst thing that could have happened already did—everyone fucking saw it—so denying it would just let Stella and Andrealphus know they’d been successful in embarrassing him to the point of silence. “Why the fuck should my sexual preferences be a factor here?! I should not be punished with losing my daughter because I found love from someone who treats me with kindness and respect, when you have done everything that you can to make me feel lesser since the moment we met! And don’t you dare insult him as well to try and play your little mind games! His name is Blitzø, and you’ll do well to fucking remember that!”
“I treat you the way I do because I never wanted to be with you! I knew from day one I would never be enough for you!” she shouted back, voice progressively getting louder to talk over him when it became apparent their little plan was backfiring.
“Bitch I never wanted to marry you either! I have tried so hard to make us comfortable, to raise our daughter in a stable household, to extend an olive branch and at the very least try to be friends!—”
“You could never appreciate what I could give you—” she tried yelling louder over him, but Stolas pressed on.
“—You’re angry with me for an arrangement I didn’t ask for nor want, and for the fact I cannot help being a gay man! Instead of directing your ire towards those who forced us into our situation, you have tormented me, hit me, thrown things at me, torn out my feathers, destroyed things that brought me joy—things from my childhood—things left for me by my dead mother! And now you hire someone to fucking murder me using my own money?!” He let slip everything he’d been bottling up since he was a child, every heartache, every way she sought to cause him pain and shamed him into silence. “Never once have I done anything of the sort towards you! Never once have I even thought to do any of this to you! This whole time you’ve instilled in me this fear of letting others know what you have done to me, making me feel shameful because my abuser is a woman, but after everything—after literally dying and being brought back to life because that man loves me and is enough to find and save me—I don’t care what you or anyone else thinks of me anymore!”
He felt tears well up in his eyes as he remembered his final moments before blood loss became too much; that last moment of joy when he’d been proven right and that Blitzø would come to rescue him, that last, chaste kiss and hearing he was loved always. He remembered waking up in the hospital, the look on both of his daughters' faces. “All throughout this ordeal, never once did you try and reach out to our daughter! To bother answering your phone when the nanny tried calling you because she needed a parent! To even just come home and be with her! Even though I did what I could to protect her during my abduction, all I could think about was her safety! And when I woke up in the hospital, when I saw her face—her tears—all I could think about was how I was failing her as a father! Had I not just divorced you before things got this bad, she would have never been put in the position of fearing her father wasn’t coming home to her alive! And through all of this, do you know who protected her and comforted her when I wasn’t able to?!” He pointed to Blitzø as angry tears finally spilled over. “That man! He is who she called when I was taken; he is who immediately dropped what he was doing to go to her, to comfort her, to promise her that he would bring me back home alive, no matter what it took! Even in the hospital, recovering from his own injuries sustained saving my life, hooked up to an IV to help flush the same drug she was exposed to out of his system and replenish bloodloss, dealing with three broken ribs, a fractured collarbone, and a gunshot wound in his arm that nearly caused him to bleed to death as well—he laid there in his fucking hospital bed and held her even though it physically hurt him to do so, he read to her, told her stories—did whatever she needed from a parent in that moment to be there for her when I wasn’t able to! And where the fuck were you?!” He glared over at his soon to be ex-wife, who in turn looked at him, for once in her life stunned into silence. “At your brother’s estate, sitting on your ass and gleefully discussing the fact I would soon be dead?!”
Then he looked Satan in the eyes from where he stood, fearless despite his tears because that’s what his family needed him to be. “Her entire basis for wanting full custody is because I fell in love with someone else who would stop at nothing to make sure Octavia and I are safe, that we both know we are loved and cherished always. Only that it’s wrong because he’s another man, is an imp, and that he fucking tops me. I have given you my argument; I have provided you with evidence of her failures as a parent and a partner. Months of abuse meticulously documented, just a small glimpse into what I have endured for the past fourteen years, and Octavia has had to for four. Stella’s evidence of me being an unfit father and partner are photographs and videos taken of private, intimate moments I shared with my boyfriend; and then, like a child, decided to play a sex tape neither Blitzø nor myself consented to being filmed—let alone aired—during our divorce hearing, with our daughter just one room over. All believing that was an appropriate thing to do. You take in all of that and tell me who you think the unfit parent is.”
The court was sent into a hushed silence somehow quieter than when his sex tape had been played. Be that stunned by the declaration of his love of being topped and being Blitzø’s submissive little bitch, his admission of being a male domestic abuse victim, the assassination attempt, or everything entirely. Without fear or hesitation, Stolas was sure to look at everyone in attendance, no longer being Stolas, the spineless coward Stella had molded him to be. The looks he got back were a mix of blank indifference, shock, pity, or amusement.
Then, he locked eyes with his father. The older man’s expression was hard to read, too many things at once with his form leaking into wisps of inky blackness. Whatever he was feeling, it couldn’t be good from the look in his eyes. Whatever may come of that after the trial, Stolas quite frankly no longer cared.
“From what you’re saying, Octavia sees your imp as more of a parental figure than your wife. Is that it?” Satan asked.
“My boyfriend, Blitzø, yes,” Stolas confirmed.
“She’s been nannied by an imp her whole life; that shouldn’t prove anything!” Andrealphus called out.
“From my records, the nanny only tends to Octavia during the times when Stolas is preoccupied with work,” Vassago responded, giving the other man a deep frown. “And Octavia being nannied has never once had her seeing Stolas as anything but her parent, because he chooses to actively be in her life and to raise her.” Then directed his focus to Satan. “Permission to question the plaintiff?”
“Permission granted,” his voice was gruff but intrigued.
Vassago curtly bowed his head. “Thank you, your honor.” Before his form vanished for a moment in a spiral of golden light before reappearing in front of Stella. “And what is it you do for your daughter, exactly?”
The dove sneered at him. “I’m as active in her life as any other royal is with their kids.”
"That didn’t answer my question,” Vassago clicked his tongue. “I’ll give you an easier one. Something that happens daily that most parents should know. What is your daughter's nighttime routine?”
Her mouth opened and closed as she tried to answer, then glared over at Stolas. “Stolas handles that,” she muttered bitterly.
“And Stolas?” Vassago asked.
“After supper, I give her her bath. She’s very particular about the water color, so I use a rose bathbomb since she likes it a nice bright pink, and rose oil is quite gentle on her sensitive skin and the delicate oil barrier of her feathers. Once she’s been bathed, I preen her feathers and dress her for bed, where I will ask her what her favorite part of the day was, and if she has any questions for me. Once she is tucked in, I read her a book of her choosing until she falls asleep. The only nights I’m unable to do so are ones where my duties to the Goetia family interfere, in which case the nanny does so in my place,” he answered smoothly, with a polite smile on his beak.
Andrealphus frowned at Stolas. “I don’t see the point you’re trying to make. Regardless of routines, why should my darling sister lose custody when she interacts with her child just the same as any other royal?”
“Just because that’s standard doesn’t mean it’s the best option for a child’s development,” Stolas cut in. “This is about who is most suited to take care of Octavia, not who is most standard.”
Vassago asked his next question. “When was the last time you’ve done something with your daughter?”
“We had tea in a garden down in Envy,” sshe answered curtly. Stolas had to hold back a scoff. Octavia’s presence there had been at Stolas’ own insistence. Stolas had been the one to care for her and keep her entertained while Stella conversed with her friends, and Stella had lost her temper over their little one spilling a bit of juice.
“And when was this?” his brother pressed.
“A month or so ago,” she said a little more hesitantly, only now realizing how bad that sounded.
“Was it just the two of you?”
“No.” She glared over at Stolas. “I had some friends there as well.”
Vassago smiled at that. “And would you say you had a nice time?”
“It was fine,” she answered, getting shorter with her responses, knowing almost instantly the mistake she made.
“And if we were to ask Octavia that, would she recall it fondly?”
“Yes.”
It took everything in Stolas to keep his expression neutral, but he couldn’t help the muffled hooty laugh that he had to hide behind his hand regardless.
“What’s so funny?” Satan asked him directly, frowning sharply as smoke puffed out from his nose.
Stolas cleared his throat and averted his eyes, seeking out Blitzø for comfort. When he saw a supportive smile and thumbs up, his heart felt light, and he responded. “I do apologize for my rudeness, your honor. I just find her watered down recollection of that day rather interesting. She’s omitting quite a few important details.”
“I’m answering his questions truthfully,” Stella snapped.
“Are you?” He looked over at her. “Because as one of those who was in attendance that afternoon, I seem to recall that outing being one of the more traumatic ones she’s attended with you.”
Stolas didn’t think it was possible for her to look any angrier, but she managed to surprise him. “Ask the girl then! She had a lovely time seeing all the plants!”
“The girl being our daughter?” Stolas tilted his head curiously.
“You know what I meant,” she huffed, once more realizing how badly her actions looked.
Octavia was led into the room with her nanny at her side. She took in the large space with curious, nervous eyes and held the woman’s hand tightly before she saw Stolas, brightened up, and dashed over to him. “Daddy!”
He smiled brightly at his daughter. “Hello my little starfire!” Despite the discomfort in his leg and arm, once more he couldn’t not bend down and catch her when she hopped up with her arms raised and perched her on his hip. “I cannot hold you for long, my little love.” He brushed her crest feathers back and kissed her forehead.“But you’ve got to be a big brave girl right now, ok?” He asked her as he passed her back over to her nanny. “Be honest, darling. Everything will be ok.”
As she was taken away and brought to the questioning stand, she watched him with large, sad eyes. It broke his heart to not be right there with her during this, to comfort her, but he knew why he couldn’t do that right now.
She was seated on her nanny’s lap, lifting her just high enough to get to the mic after it was adjusted. She looked so nervous, little eyes scanning over the large room. When she saw Stella, there was a little look of fear that flashed over her face before she looked back at her dad. He offered her a comforting smile, and that seemed to put her little mind at ease.
“Princess Octavia, do you understand the difference between telling the truth and telling a lie?” Satan asked in a surprisingly gentle tone.
She looked up at him nervously and responded, “Yes.”
“And do you promise to only tell the truth?”
She nodded and repeated, “Yes.” Before looking back at Stolas for comfort.
“Hello, Princess Octavia,” Vassago greeted her warmly. She perked up and smiled at her uncle. “Would you be able to answer a few questions with as many details as you can remember?” She nodded. “Do you remember having tea in a garden with your mother recently?”
Her bright, determined eyes dimmed and began to water, but she put on a brave face. “Uhhu.”
“Did you do anything fun?”
“Daddy walked around it with me, and we looked at all the pretty flowers, and there was a frog on one of them. It had really, really big eyes, and Daddy told me not to poke them because frogs don’t like getting their eyes poked. And then we saw some other cool frogs, and I remembered not to poke their eyes even though they look like big buttons,” she answered earnestly.
“Did anything else happen besides Daddy bringing you around to see the flowers and frogs?” Vassago asked.
Her eyes started to water again, but she put on her brave face. “We had a tea party with Mommy and her friends. Daddy was drinking juice, and I wanted a sip, but it was a big kid cup, and I don’t use those a whole lot just yet. I’m just a little lady. But Daddy let me try, and I spilled, and Mommy got very mad.”
“She got very mad?”
She nodded and looked deeply upset. “And Mommy and Daddy got into a big fight, cause Mommy was mad, and I’m just a little lady, so Daddy was mad that she was mad. Daddy took me home, and we watched cartoons together before we had dinner, and then he gave me a pink bath, and then he did my feathers, and I got dressed in my princess pjs, and we talked about the frogs, and I went to sleep. But then I had a bad dream that I was given away cause I couldn’t stop spilling juice, and when I woke up, Daddy came in and read me a book about frogs and toads, and we had a sleepover.”
“Do you do things with Mommy often?”
His little girl shook her head. “Not since I spilled juice.”
“Do you do things with Daddy often?”
She nodded. “I get to do stuff with him every day. Like at bedtime, and in the morning he gets me ready by waking me up and doing my feathers and helping me pick out my outfit, because I’m just a little lady, and we go eat breakfast. I help him when he’s gardening by being in charge of the music on his phone, and…” she quieted down and looked at him, scared. Her little hand came up and rested on her arm, where the bullet nicked her the last time they were gardening.
“Princess Octavia?”
“Last time daddy got really hurt, and my arm got really hurt, and Blitzø got really hurt because a man took daddy, and I was very scared cause I was all alone. But I had daddy’s phone, and I called his friend, and he came over with his other friends, and Loona was there, and she yelled at the guards a whole lot. Then Blitzø made me a pinky promise he would bring Daddy back, and that means he would bring him back because you can’t break a pinky promise. And he didn’t break it.”
“And Blitzø is Daddy’s friend?”
She nodded. “Yeah. He’s good friends with Daddy, and sometimes he comes over, and we draw horses, and he tells funny stories, and he’s very nice! One time he took me to get pretzels, and he got me two even though Daddy only said to get me one, cause when he asked if I wanted a salty pretzel or a cinnamon sugar one, I said I couldn’t decide because I’m just a little lady, and both options were good. If I have something salty, I’d have to also have something sweet. So he let me get one of each, and I split them with Daddy.” She smiled happily. “And he got me a lemonade, cause if you get a cinnamon sugar pretzel you gotta have a lemonade.”
“Do you feel safe with him around?”
She nodded enthusiastically. “Yeah! He’s really nice, and he shares his snacks with me, and shows me how to draw and puts my artwork on his fridge. And even though he’s smaller than Daddy, he still picks me up and can toss me up super high and catch me! And he’s strong and tough, and he makes bad people go away. And he has a daughter named Loona, and she’s a little older than me, but she’s really nice too, and we play video games together! She also lets me have all the chocolate chips in the trail mix when we have it cause she can’t have it without getting sick.” She was rambling at this point, taking Vassago’s request for as much information as she could remember to heart.
As she went on, Stolas’ eyes trailed over to his boyfriend, and he found himself smiling fondly at him. Blitzø was watching her with watery eyes, and if their conversation before the trial started was anything to go by, those were words he very much needed to hear. Their girls love him so much already, and the two children on the way would love him just as much. How could they not?
Absently, he rested a hand over his stomach and thought of the life growing inside it. Their love, their bond, it created something special. They would be a family of six; their lives would be chaotic, but so worthwhile and rewarding, and Stolas felt so very fortunate to have him as his soulmate.
“That’s Blitzø!” He was broken from his thoughts by Octavia calling out in delight and pointing towards his soulmate. “Hi Blitzø!” She began to wave her little hand. The man in question was waving back, fighting for his life to keep the tears from falling while all eyes looked his way.
Vassago looked on in amusement, but as he opened his beak to ask his next question, Andrealphus interrupted in outrage. “This is bullshit! They’ve clearly trained her to say things to discredit my darling sister!”
“Miss Octavia, is this true? Did Stolas and his imp tell you to say anything?” Satan asked.
She nodded her head,.“Yes.” And Stolas felt his heart drop to his feet. He had no idea what she was talking about. Had Blitzø said anything to her? He looked to his soulmate, who looked back at him in equal confusion.
Andrealphus smirked at him in triumph. “Exactly.” His voice was overly confident. “And what was it they told you to say?”
“Daddy told me to tell the truth.” The peacock’s smug expression dropped immediately as amused laughter filled the courtroom.
Vassago looked at the other man with glee before asking his niece one final question. “If you were to choose between your mother and father, who would you prefer to live with?”
“Daddy.” Octavia answered without pause.
“Thank you, Princess Octavia. That will be all.” Vassago closed out.
“Permission to question the defendant’s imp.” Andrealphus stood up and glared over in Blitzø’s direction.
“Use his fucking name,” Stolas frowned deeply as he glared back. “He’s not my imp, he’s my boyfriend.” A flash of rage and disgust went over Andrealphus’ face at the correction, once more infuriated by the fact Stolas would choose to date an imp over another Goetia. As if Stolas would have willingly fucked the other man if given the opportunity, had Blitzø not been in the picture. As if he would even want to date him if given the chance.
Nobody else seemed to care about Stolas’ correction as Satan waved his hand flippantly. “Permission granted.”
Blitzø looked confused and nervous as he was led up to the stand and sworn in. His brother-in-law approached him, smirking at Stolas as he passed by. “Imp, what are your intentions with our dear Stolas?”
Blitzø furrowed his brows. “The fuck is that supposed to mean? We’re dating.”
Andrealphus sneered down at him, looking at Blitzø as if he were a particularly gross bug he’d sooner crush beneath the heel of his boot than an actual person. “And how is it the two of you met?”
“How does any of this matter?” Stolas frowned, not liking the direction this was headed.
“I do believe it does,” Andrealphus responded. “As you’ve stated yourself, the two of you began to date for about a month or so. Within that time, this imp has had frequent contact with Octavia, so I find it quite interesting that a father who claims to be so devoted to his daughter would just allow a man he’d only begun to date to be introduced to her so early on.”
“The circus,” Blitzø cut in. “We met as children on his tenth birthday, when his dad brought him to the circus.” Stolas now frowned at Blitzø, not liking where this was going.
“His tenth birthday, you say?” the peacock asked antagonistically. “Very curious, as it’s well documented that the imp he’d played with was one of two casualties that occurred in a fire that took place there not five years ago. Do you mean to tell me that you magically rose from the dead?”
“I was never dead; the reports were wrong,” Blitzø answered casually; not a lie, but not the whole truth either. Stolas looked at Vassago, feeling terror grow with every admission that left Blitzø’s mouth. His brother’s posture gave him an unbothered appearance, but strangely enough his eyes were burning with barely contained excitement. Blitzø and Vassago shared a look, something that had Stolas both confused and also mourning what was going to happen to his soulmate as a result.
“How could legally confirmed documents be wrong?” Andrealphus pressed. “From my own findings, there’s a paper trail showing that this death had quite the insurance payout. So do you mean to tell us all that you went and staged your death to cash out on your own life insurance?”
Blitzø’s tail lashed out behind him in irritation. “I didn’t forge shit, and I wasn’t the one who cashed in on my life insurance. And maybe you need to get your fucking eyes checked, but I didn’t decide to get the very apparent burn scars all over my body for fucking funzies.”
“How do we know that those didn’t happen in a different incident? From what we know, your line of work is in the mercenary business. Those scars could have come from anywhere.” Andrealphus countered. “This all seems rather convenient, does it not?”
Blitzø smirked in amusement before responding, “I know your prissy little ass doesn't know dick about scars on imps, so let me explain it to you like you’re fucking stupid.” Andrealphus’ expression somehow got angrier, something of which would usually have Stolas cracking a smile, but given the circumstances, he was too terrified of what he was about to lose because of it.
Blitzø continued. “We wear our scars with pride, but getting scars as I have on the job isn’t exactly a good look. It would mean I suck at my job, and that’s not good for my reputation. In the mercenary business, reputation is everything, and I think you’ll find from my portfolio over the past few years that it doesn’t exactly scream incompetent. I have these burn scars all over my body, as you’ve seen already in your compiled spank bank of me and Stolas fucking, and injuries like that would have taken me out for a month to heal without clothes chafing like a bitch, and public nudity isn’t exactly legal so walking around pride with my cock out is a no-go—unless we’re in court apparently, in which case it’s fine to play videos of two grown men mashing pissers."
Andrealphus frowned deeply, feathers puffing out just enough to know Blitzø’s words got to him before smiling. “Let’s say that you’re telling the truth here. Do you mean to tell me that Stolas let a trained, dangerous mercenary be around his four year old daughter in less than a month of dating, but that’s somehow safe because the two of you had a single play date twelve years ago?”
“He trusts me around her because I took down a hellhound fighting and trafficking ring and adopted my eight year old daughter, Loona, from that wreckage,” Blitzø smirked. “That, and the fact I’m his soulmate.”
“Stolas,” Andrealphus turned to him with a triumphant smirk. “Would you be able to show the people here your soulmark?”
Stolas hesitantly lifted his hand to show the white mark permanently etched into the back of his hand. “This isn’t a fair use of evidence and you know it.” He frowned back at Andrealphus. “You can see plain as day Blitzø’s hands are heavily scarred.”
“Rather convenient, don’t you think?” the peacock asked, looking out to everyone in the court. “And I suppose any documentation of it being there in the first place has also burned up?”
“I’m pregnant!” Stolas shouted, refusing to let Blitzø show them the documents he’d gotten his hands on. “I’m a cisgender man, and I’m pregnant with twins. The only way that is possible is if Blitzø is my soulmate. Lack of those documents means nothing with evidence as clear as that!” There was a collective gasp as all eyes locked on Stolas. “We found this out in my hospital stay; there are medical records and bloodwork documenting it. With the damage my body sustained and the fact I was legally dead—the only way this pregnancy could have survived is if the other parent is an imp. I trusted him around my daughter so soon because he is my soulmate, and I refuse to believe the universe would pick for me a man who would ever mistreat a child, let alone treat her anywhere near how Stella does.”
The look on Andrealphus’ face was a mixed bag of anger, disgust, and something close to heartbreak. “Repulsive,” he sneered. “The fact you would choose to produce such an abomination—taint the Goetia bloodline with such filth!” He took it deeply personal. “Soulmate or not, something like that shouldn’t exist!”
“Objection!” Vassago interrupted. “The family bloodline has nothing to do with the case at hand, and he’s clearly letting his own feelings for my brother cloud his judgment!”
“You shut your beak, I don’t—“
“Silence!” Satan shouted, deep and booming so loud it shook the large room and caused a burst of fire to explode from the lava pit surrounding them. “I don’t give a shit about this!” His simmering anger bubbled into rage. “You mean to tell me you have disrespected my laws and faked your death, and swindled Mammon of his money for insurance fraud?!” He directed it all towards Blitzø, who shrank in his seat.
“Satan, remember your three R’s.” His anger management coach flew in front of him quickly and held his arms up. “Recognize, reduce, and reflect. You’re at a ten, and need to be at a four.”
The Sin of Wrath glared at the imp and huffed out more steam from his nose before sitting back and grumbling out. “Fine.” Before focusing back on Blitzø. “I have given you life, and you disrespect me by making a mockery of my domain,” he growled out. Stolas felt his heart stop. After everything they’ve been through, he was going to lose Blitzø again. For good this time, no bouncing back—he was going to be killed regardless of what Stolas had told Blitzø—all thanks to Andrealphus’ stupid infatuation with him.
Nothing Stolas tried could stop this; losing him was inevitable now because Stolas’ brother-in-law felt he was entitled to his body and affection. This was all his own fault—had he not antagonized Andrealphus on his wedding anniversary, none of this would have happened…
Then Vassago stepped forward.“Your honor, if I may.” Despite everything, his brother still seemed calm and looked in control of the situation. “I have taken it upon myself to look further into the matter, having seen this possibility being brought up, and can prove that Blitzø is not at fault in any way.” Both Stolas and Blitzø looked at the parrot in confusion. “As a man who also values the truth and demon law being abided by here in Hell, I believe it would be best to take in all the evidence before convicting the wrong man.”
Satan glared at Vassago, and had that been said by anyone else, Stolas was certain they would have been squashed beneath the Sin’s large fist. It was very evident Satan was growing tired of this case already. “Make it quick,” he growled out.
“Thank you, your honor.” He curtly bowed his head before gesturing to the screen that previously played the sex tape. Now on display were scanned copies of the Fizzarolli’s previous contract with Mammon. “Right after the life insurance policies were filed, Fizzarolli, the main attraction of their circus, had signed on to work under Mammon and leave the circus behind. Days after this contract was signed, Cash Buckzo went and filed life insurance policies on his wife, his two children, and Fizzarolli, as well as a policy on the circus grounds itself.” The image switched over to newspaper clippings regarding the fire. “Given the fact that many barrels of Manmon’s fire salts were stored in the center of the grounds, accompanied by fireworks and other such explosives, it would stand within reason that Cash Buckzo intended to have that fire occur and hedged his bets on the four of them dying so he could profit and leave everything behind now that his main attraction was set to leave.”
Stolas looked at Blitzø, who was watching the screen with wide and confused eyes, like he’d never known anything about this to begin with. He had the look of a man who’d been carrying the full weight of this event on his back this whole time—given his words this morning, Stolas was inclined to believe it.
“It would stand within reason that the faked death was staged by Cash Buckzo, and Blitzø, having been heavily injured and not within his right mind after the fire, was coerced into following along with his father’s scheme and has shouldered that blame under false accusations.” Vassago looked to Satan. “So if I may request, given the evidence I’ve gathered, I would like for us to table this specific issue, which has nothing to do with the current custody battle this hearing is for, and we come back to this at a later date so that I may look into this further.”
Beneath his simmering rage, Satan looked intrigued by what Vassago had shown. His blazing eyes flickered down to Blitzø, who was still staring at the screen, then over to Stolas. “I will allow it,” he gruffed out. “I'm already tired of this, so let’s just cut to the chase here. You have stated your intent to relinquish your assets to Stella in this divorce. So I will grant this request. This means you are giving up your estate, your legions, and all contracts and obligations over to her until your daughter is of legal age.”
Stolas nodded, “I understand.”
Then Satan looked to Stella. “Given the fact that you’re the mother, I grant you Octavia's primary custody, and Prince Stolas may see her every other weekend.” Stolas’ heart plummeted to his feet, and he felt as though he would be sick. His mouth fell open in shock, and his eyes welled up with tears as he thought of the life he’d just cursed his darling daughter to, but right as Vassago went to object on his behalf, Lucifer took everyone by surprise and interjected.
“Did we all watch the same case here?!” he sounded personally offended. “What the fuck makes you think giving her primary custody is a good idea? The girl clearly stated she wanted to stay with Stolas, and given everything that’s happened, I don’t see how Stella is fit to care for her properly.”
Satan looked at the King of Hell in mounting irritation. “We always try to keep the kid with their mother.” His voice was more of a growl of anger. “And Stolas doesn’t have a roof over his head currently. What makes you think he’s in any position to care for his daughter?”
“If I may, I would like to interject.” Stolas’ head practically did a 180 as he turned towards his father. “As the prior owner of my son’s estate, I feel I should have some say in what occurs with it. The prenuptial agreement states an infidelity clause, but that’s null and void given the abomination he’s cheated with is his soulmate. Not to mention his wife’s inability to use magic. She’s in no state to take on all of his prior responsibilities until Octavia is practiced enough to do them herself.” Paimon’s form disappeared into a cloud of black smoke before he reappeared next to Vassago, pointedly avoiding looking at his youngest son. “And in that case these duties would fall back on me. So cutting Stolas off from his estate entirely would push that work off onto me.”
‘Ah there we go.’ Stolas thought bitterly to himself. ‘Once more Father only cares for himself here.’
“And to be frank, I don’t trust them to respect my late wife’s memorial garden enough to ensure it’s tended to,” Paimon added, showing perhaps the smallest shreds of selflessness Stolas had ever bore witness to. “My son might be a disgrace, but at least he respects his mother enough to keep that memorial well kept.”
“With all due respect, your majesty.” Andrealphus stood up and frowned. “We have photographs of him pinning his imp to the base of her statue making out with him.”
“To be fair,” Blitzø cut in, “Stolas stopped and lead us away out of respect for her.”
“And given the fact you took photos and videos of it, you knew that full well,” Stolas added, as if that helped his case.
Paimon looked at Stolas and signed before muttering, “Imbecile, you aren’t helping.”
“And I would be more than fit to fill in until my darling niece is able to take on her fathers prior responsibilities.” Andrealphus called out.
“Silence, boy.” Paimon muttered and glared at the marquees, “Given the fact the worst of my son's transgressions is that he got bent, I see no reason to strip him of all his possessions for the sake of breaking a prenuptial agreement. It was with his soulmate so that should void the agreement.”
Lucifer flew over and perched on Satan’s shoulder, and given the look he got from the other man, his presence was akin to a flea on him, “See that? It was his soulmate.” The King of Hell said cheekily, “That law was especially important to Lilith, and is adored by Charlie. We can’t ignore such important laws like that, now can we?” Satan growled, “So I say let him keep his assets and primary custody. The man has been through enough the past few days, looks like he could really use a win.”
Stolas tried not to get his hopes up, but he found himself looking up at Lucifer like the angel he was, “As in record, Stolas takes his duties to the Goetia family very seriously and has done so since he was ten.” His brother spoke up in his defense, “Nobody else would be nearly as qualified to teach Octavia how to use her powers, and his ability to read the stars and record prophesies is currently unmatched. Andrealphus can use magic, but that doesn’t equate to my brother’s domain in the slightest. You wouldn’t hire a fry cook to make a cake and expect the same product as a professional baker.”
“There you have it.” Lucifer clapped his hands, “Divorced cleanly. He keeps his things, and you—“ he pointed to Stella, “Get supervised visitation of Octavia and mandatory parenting classes if you want to fight for more.”
“NO!” Stella finally shouted, “This isn’t how this was supposed to go!”
Stolas’ eyes locked with Blitzø, his own brain still trying to process the emotional roller coaster he’d just been thrown into. Stella wasn’t wrong, per se. When he’d been served his divorce papers yesterday morning, he’d fully expected to lose everything.
The tantrum Stella was throwing became background noise. He was pretty sure she called him a faggot at least once more, followed by more screams of a prenuptial agreement, a string of curse words so creative it would impress Blitzø.
He was grounded by a hand clapping down on his shoulder, and he looked over to Vassago, who was looking at him with a fond smile on his beak. Everything about his expression silently conveyed an ‘I told you so.’ That Stolas honestly couldn’t be too upset about. This whole time he’d been reassuring that things would be ok, and he was right.
Stolas pulled his brother into a tight hug, “Thank you.” He said softly, ignoring the burning pain on his shoulder as he hugged him tight, “Thank you.” He locked eyes with his father over Vassago’s shoulder, and despite stepping up like he did today, Stolas couldn’t bring it in himself to thank the man who caused the situation to begin with.
He let Vassago go and looked to Blitzø, who was cautiously approaching him, weary of his father’s gaze tracking his every movement. Stolas let Vassago go and immediately dove for Blitzø and held him in a looser grip, weary of his broken bones, “We did it.” His voice was choked up as he spoke into the fabric of his sweater.
He felt a purr rumble from the imps chest as he held him as tight as he could, “We did.”
Stolas kissed him, right there in the middle of the court room, because he needed it and because he could.
It was dizzying and thrilling, showing all of the Goetia family that he just didn’t care anymore what they thought. He was in love with this man, and as promised he was going to make it everyone else’s problem. So with the eyes of his horrid ex brother in law on him, with his ex-wife’s shrill screeching in the background as she was held back from marching up to Satan and Lucifer by the marquees, in front of his own father, he kissed the man he loved like it was a marriage.
“I love you.” He said sweetly as he broke their kiss and held his boyfriends face in his hands, “I love you so fucking much, Blitzø.” Happy tears were trailing down his face as he took in the imp’s expression. Something soft and optimistic, as the hand that once bore their soulmark came to rest over the soulmark still present on Stolas’.
“I love you too.” Blitzø pressed his cheek into his palm, “So fucking much.”
·༻𐫱༺·
Stolas’ mother’s garden was peaceful and calm, and his estate felt especially secure since the change in palace guards happened. There would always be this slight uneasiness below his feathers as he worked this section of his mother’s garden, a sadness when his hands traced over the scars permanently etched across the bulbs and stems of the plants that were damaged when he’d been abducted, but he couldn’t let that feeling rule his life.
The poor bulb that was severed from the vine by the touch of blessed rope, the darling little thing he’d just been telling that he’d give it attention soon enough, had a little funeral at Octavia’s insistence. Now in its place sat a little painted stone, with a crudely drawn bulb and some indecipherable scribbling written by his youngest in its memory.
Octavia was on an outing with Blitzo getting something, Stolas wasn’t entirely sure what but it was apparently a surprise for him later today. Loona was sprawled out on a blanket behind him, taking a much needed nap after helping him in the garden all afternoon, a little more hands on than he allowed Octavia to be.
He turned his head to check once more that she was still asleep, and she was; wearing a pair of black overall shorts and a yellow and black striped shirt, his little bumblebee, with her ivory white paws speckled with dirt.
Stolas’ movements halted when he heard a familiar giggle of Octavia, this giddy little chirp that always brought a smile to his beak. When he looked up from the new sprouts he’d been dotting over, he saw his soulmate and youngest approach carrying a few bags from a familiar toy store down in Gluttony.
“Daddy daddy!” Octavia marched up excitedly holding two soft pretzels in her hands, “Do you think Rory and Cecil will like a pretzel?” It was her way of asking about the babies still developing inside him. Two more daughters, that’s what the reports said, and they’d been able to settle on names rather quickly. Aurora and Celeste, two more Goetia leaning full names with impish nicknames the both of them were quite fond of.
Stolas chuckled and rested a hand over his now rounder stomach, where the twins' eggs were now almost completely developed as he was nearing two months gravid, “Oh, I don’t see why not.” He answered as he wiped his dirt covered hands on his canvas apron, “Did you have fun, my little starfire?”
Octavia beamed up at him and nodded, still holding her pretzels in triumph, “Yeah! We went to a cool place with art all over the walls, and there was a really cool guy with drawings all over his arms, and Blitzø was very brave and sat in a chair!”
Stolas’ head tilted in confusion as he looked up at his soulmate curiously, “Where did you take her?”
“We were at the mall picking up some stuff for the eggies, and well, I have a little surprise.” It was then that Stolas noticed the clear bandaging around his soulmate's hand, the one his soulmark burned off of years back, and his breath caught in his throat, “There was a place I was looking into for a few weeks now that specialize in soulmark restoration for situations like ours.” He lifted his hand so Stolas could get a better look through the thin sheet of cellophane protecting newly tattooed skin.
It wasn’t the white mark it once was, but now etched in black against white scarring was an exact copy of his soulmark, back where it should have been all along, “Blitzø…” he held it delicately in his hands.
“Do you like it?” The imp asked as he watched Stolas turn his hand this way and that to get a good look at it.
“Do I like it?” Stolas asked and looked up at Blitzø with a watery smile, “Darling I love it, it’s perfect!”
And he meant it in more ways than one. Perfect that Blitzø was here with him. That the weather was even and temperate, their daughters were happy and safe, their babies were on track and in perfect condition, and Stolas hardly had to worry about dealing with his ex-wife. His life right now, for the first time ever, was perfect.
I just wanted to give another special thanks to Sanga for the lovely artwork they made for this fic! It made my first ever time writing for an event special and I adore it so much!!!
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