Page 254 of Venom Sweeter than Honey
He sighs and does the same.
I close my eyes, but his words have them popping open again.
“I don’t want to share Violette and Levi with you.”
My lip curls. “The feeling is mutual.”
The look we share is ripe with both boredom and resentment, but in the face of an impasse, we both let go of what we cannot control. It’s a skill that took me... us? Eons to develop.
“So, you’re going to come with us to Abyrion’s palace?”
He looks mildly offended that I've even asked. “Nothing could stop me.”
Gradually, I nod, examining the shifting shadows on his otherwise identical body.
“How are Mors and Persephone?”
The look on his face softens. “Mors is... sweet, as usual.” His lips tilt in a rueful smirk as he adds, “Still Persephone’s fucking doormat.”
I huff a small laugh. They really are good together. He is the calm to her storm. Persephone and I were just... two storms.
“I love being Violette and Levi’s doormat.”
Not that they treat me like one, but either of them could wipe their muddy boots on me and I’d say,‘Again, please.’
A soft grin tilts his lips. “... The greatest gift.”
We sit in comfortable silence, our heads perched on one another’s feet as we openly stare at each other, completely unencumbered by social norms because...
I am he, and he is me.
What formality could we possibly be bound by?
Perhaps this isn’t such a curse.
Perhaps it’s a gift.
Another ally.
The resentment in my chest is bleeding out by the second, replaced by something far warmer.
Precious.
I’ve never had a brother before.
Is that a childish thought?
Even if it is, he suffered the same loneliness, rejection, and heartbreak I did.
The countless deaths of our loved ones.
However, we do have a problem...
“You need another name.”
His lips curls again. “Fuck you, you need a new name.”
A sigh heaves from my chest as I sink into the water up to my chin, grumbling. “No.”
