"Amethiel, it’s pulling you."
"Amethiel, should we call the knights?"
"Answer us, Amie. I swear to all the Gods I will kill that creature."
"Amethiel!"
"Amie—"
"Enough!" Amethiel snapped, his voice cutting through theirs.
He needed a moment.
Just a moment to think.
’This is new,’ he thought, his mind already trying to piece it together. ’The reaction... the timing...’
But their voices kept coming, sharp and urgent, filling the room, pressing against him.
He couldn’t focus.
So he acted.
Amethiel reached into his coat without hesitation, fingers finding the familiar vial. He took a steady breath, then threw it straight at Kree.
The glass shattered on impact.
The reaction was immediate.
Kree’s body jerked, muscles locking as the shock coursed through him. A strained sound tore from his throat as the glow beneath his skin flickered violently.
The tentacles tightened for a split second—
Then began to loosen.
Very, very slowly.
Almost unwillingly.
As soon as the pressure eased, Amethiel pulled free and pushed them away, stepping forward.
"What is that?" Lilior asked, still tense.
"My zappy zappy stoppy thingy," Amethiel answered, almost casually as he moved closer to Kree.
"What kind of name is that?" Hyacinthe asked with the same disbelief in his tone as Johnson did a few days ago.
"It makes it easier to remember what it does," Amethiel replied, already stopping in front of Kree.
Kree was still convulsing, his body trembling under the lingering effect.
"Are you sure you should be going near it...?" Lilior asked from behind him.
"It’s not going to hurt me," Amethiel said. "It only grabs me when it’s being needy, but—"
He heard movement behind him.
Footsteps.
One of them was getting closer.
Amethiel didn’t turn immediately.
But Kree reacted.
Even while shaking, even while restrained by the shock—
One of the tentacles moved swiftly.
Amethiel barely had time to register it.
He turned just as it shot past him.
Straight toward Lilior.
"Lili!" Amethiel called out, his voice sharp.
But—
It didn’t strike.
It didn’t lash out.
It gave Lilior a firm push.
Lilior stumbled back a step, caught off guard.
"...Huh?" Amethiel blinked.
"What the hell?" Lilior muttered, steadying himself as the tentacle pressed against him again, forcing him further away. "Amie, why is this thing pushing me back?"
"It’s still being electrocuted," Hyacinthe said, his voice low. "How is it even moving?"
He tried stepping forward as well.
The reaction was immediate.
Another tentacle shot out, stopping him the same way it had stopped Lilior.
Not attacking.
Just—
Keeping them away.
Amethiel’s eyes widened slightly.
’That’s not random,’ he thought, watching closely now. ’It’s selective.’
He turned back to Kree.
Kree’s gaze was locked on him, red eyes clouded with pain, his breathing uneven.
Still focused.
Still aware.
’Could it be...’
Amethiel took a slow step closer.
"Are you..." He started, lowering himself slightly to meet Kree’s eye level. "Jealous?"
Kree didn’t answer.
But the reaction came anyway.
The tentacles hesitated.
Then began to withdraw.
Slowly retreating, slipping back as if the tension holding them had been released.
By the time Amethiel stood directly in front of him, they were already disappearing.
Gone.
"Amethiel, what is going—" Hyacinthe started.
"Don’t come any closer, Hya," Amethiel said without looking back.
"What? Why? Is it dangerous? Amethiel, I swear—"
"It’s not," Amethiel cut in. "It’s... jealous. I think."
"Jealous?" Lilior and Hyacinthe said at the same time, disbelief clear in their voices.
Amethiel didn’t explain.
There wasn’t time.
’I need to confirm it,’ he thought.
"No time," Amethiel said, already reaching for Kree’s arm and pulling him up. "I need to take him back to the lab."
"Back to the lab?" Lilior stepped forward slightly. "Do you need help?"
"No," Amethiel said quickly. "It might aggravate him."
"That sounds like more reason for us to help," Lilior argued.
Amethiel didn’t respond right away.
His grip tightened slightly on Kree.
’No,’ he thought, watching the way Kree’s attention stayed fixed on him. ’I need to handle this on my own.’
His grip tightened slightly on Kree’s arm.
"We’re leaving," Amethiel said, his tone final.
His brothers should know now what that tone meant.
"Amethiel—" Hyacinthe started.
"Stay where you are," Amethiel cut in, sharper this time.
He didn’t look back as he began walking toward the door, Kree following close behind him, almost too close.
The faint sound of movement trailed him, uneven steps, restrained but tense.
"Amie, this isn’t funny," Lilior said, pushing himself up from the couch. "That thing just shoved me."
"And it will do more if you keep moving," Amethiel replied, glancing over his shoulder briefly. "So don’t."
As if on cue—
"Hiss."
Kree’s reaction came again, low and strained, the sound dragging through his throat.
Amethiel felt it immediately.
The shift.
The tension is building again behind him.
He didn’t need to turn to know.
’It really is jealous.’
"Stay," Amethiel repeated, more controlled this time, his voice steady.
This Amethiel wasn’t their little brother.
This was the clever Amethiel.
Lilior paused.
Hyacinthe did too.
Both of them exchanged a look, something unspoken passing between them.
Kree shifted again, another faint hiss slipping out as his body leaned slightly toward them, like he was ready to move if they took another step.
Amethiel stopped walking.
Just for a second.
He didn’t turn fully, only enough to glance at his brothers.
"I’ll explain later," he said. "Just... don’t follow."
There was a brief pause.
Then Hyacinthe raised his hands slightly. "Fine. But if it hurts you—"
"It won’t," Amethiel said, cutting him off again.
’It hasn’t,’ he added in his thoughts. ’Not once.’
Lilior frowned, clearly unconvinced, but he didn’t move forward again.
"Go, then," he muttered.
Amethiel gave a small nod.
"Goodbye, brothers."
‧ . ‿̩͙⊱༻♕༺⊰‿̩͙ . ‧
"So..." Hyacinthe started, his gaze still fixed on the closed door, as if expecting it to open again. "We can both agree that this creature is the strangest he’s brought."
Lilior let out a quiet breath, running a hand through his hair as he leaned back slightly. "That, dear brother, is a no-brainer."
The room felt different without Amethiel in it.
It almost felt empty despite the fact that he wasn’t alone.
Lilior’s eyes lingered on the door for a moment longer before he turned to Hyacinthe. "Should we do something?"
Hyacinthe didn’t answer right away. His arms crossed slowly over his chest, his expression tightening as he thought.
"Definitely," he said at last. "It’s... not right."
His gaze dropped briefly, replaying what he had just seen.
"That thing," he continued, more quietly now, "it doesn’t act like a creature. It’s a little too aware." He frowned slightly. "I’m starting to feel like it’s closer to a human than anything else."
Lilior huffed faintly, though there was no humor in it. "I noticed that too."
He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees.
"It watches him," Lilior added. "Not like prey. Not like something waiting for instructions either."
He paused.
’It was looking at him like...’ he didn’t finish the thought.
"It’s attached," he said instead, more firmly. "And not in a normal way."
Hyacinthe glanced at him.
"Amie is usually every monster’s worst nightmare," Lilior continued, his tone dropping. "They fear him. They avoid him. Even the docile ones never... cling like that."
He shook his head slightly.
"A monster getting jealous?" Lilior muttered, almost to himself. "That doesn’t happen."
Heavy silence settled between them again.
It was a bit...uncomfortable.
"I don’t like it," Hyacinthe admitted.
His fingers tightened slightly against his arm.
’It moved even while being shocked,’ he thought. ’And not to attack... but to keep us away.’
That part stayed with him the most.
"It felt intentional," he added.
Lilior nodded slowly.
"I feel like it’s attaching to Amie for a reason," he said. "Not just instinct."
He hesitated.
Then said it anyway.
"As if it wants to take him."
The words hung in the air.
Neither of them laughed.
Neither of them dismissed it.
"Right," Hyacinthe said quietly.
For a moment, neither spoke.
Because the truth was—
This wasn’t like before.
Amethiel had brought home strange creatures before. Dangerous ones. Unstable ones. Things that should have worried them.
But they never did.
Because none of them ever looked at Amethiel the way that thing did.
None of them ever reached for him like that.
None of them ever reacted to them with... intent.
Hyacinthe exhaled slowly, his jaw tightening.
Amethiel was strange.
That had always been true.
But he was theirs.
Their brother.
The one who laughed too easily when he was being dramatic. The one who clung to them despite insisting he didn’t need anyone.
The one who reminded them too much of their mother to ever push away.
And that—
That was exactly why this felt wrong.
’Something is off,’ Hyacinthe thought.
Lilior straightened slightly beside him, his expression hardening.
’If it even tries to take him...’
"We have to talk to Father," Hyacinthe said, finally breaking the silence.
Lilior nodded immediately.
"Yeah," he said. "We do."