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Holly was tired.
Physically, emotionally, mentally; she was exhausted.
She had been through so much over the last… goodness, she didn’t even know how long it’d been. Days had felt like weeks, weeks like months, months like years. Time had, at some point, begun to blend together for the demon, and events just seemed to happen whenever, time be damned and forgotten.
Damned and forgotten.
Heh.
Those words sounded very familiar, didn’t they?
Yes. To her tired mind, she supposed they did.
Those words had started this whole mess for her, hadn’t they?
Long before she’d even left home, those words had haunted her.
From birth, she’d been damned and scorned for reasons she couldn’t help. She’d been told many a time by the orphanage that housed her that she was unwanted, that she did nothing but paint a target onto her back by being the way she was, and that kept her from being loved. Being as young and fearful as she was, she believed those in charge. She’d believed every harsh insult, every slap and slash at her frail frame, every stinging word, was deserved. She believed it all; all because of the simple fact that it was impossible for anyone to love her.
She’d be forgotten.
Alone, afraid, and forgotten by the world around her.
It hadn’t stopped during her early youth years. If anything, it’d only gotten worse. While she attended whatever form of education they had in the marshlands, the other children singled her out immediately, and she quickly became the catalyst of the other children’s “fun”. They would call her names, “coarse little monster!” and “pasty!” were among some of the most popular. She couldn’t count the number of times they’d tied her up to the nearest flagpole and used her as target practice for their newly learnt spells. She’d always been at the bottom of a dogpile, hands pulling at her horns and tail that would leave her aching for days.
They had made her cry… a lot.
Heh… she always had been a crier, hadn’t she?
Yes. She supposed she had been.
When she was adopted, it had taken her years to fully trust that her parents weren’t going to abandon her, much like her birth parents -and the rest of the world- had. Once she had, she couldn’t have been more grateful to call those two women her mothers. The first, Willow, had a bit of spunk, but it was very toned down. She was a tiefling, grey-toned in complexion with wild coppery hair that couldn’t be tamed. Her clothing often reflected her attitude, as she said it was a way to express yourself and your emotions. She was a woman of adventure, but one who also knew her limits. Her dialect was one that the young demon had copied, “imprinting” was the word she remembered hearing, though to a much larger degree. If you hadn’t known her, you might’ve had trouble understanding her at times. She would have little wrestling matches with Holly when they played, more often than not letting the little demon win, as seeing the pure joy sparkling in those red eyes was enough of a win for her.
Her other mother, Georgiana, was much more mellow than her wife, having adopted a peaceful way of life long ago. A tiefling as well, she possessed a dark red complexion, a delicate face framed by long wavy black hair that was always decorated with some sort of flora. She was always dressed in simple, flowing dresses that accentuated her form in all the right ways, though they were never too revealing. “Cottage core” was the term she often used to describe her fashion, and Holly thought it was very suiting, as she was as graceful in personality as she was in appearance. She spoke gently and slowly with a transatlantic accent, her soft melodic voice often heard singing her daughter to sleep. Holly would often seek her out for comfort on difficult nights when she was plagued with nightmares, and would be easily soothed by soft claw-tipped fingers combing through her hair and gently sliding across her forehead in a repeated motion while Willow would rub small, comforting circles into her back until she fell back asleep.
They had loved Holly from the very beginning. Albino, runt of the litter, emotional little Holly held a special, dear place in both their hearts, and after a while, once she let them in, they too held a special place in Holly’s heart.
She loved them.
And they loved her.
…at least, she hoped they still did.
She didn’t even remember what words had been said, what hostilities had been thrown at each other.
All she could remember was how it started, how it ended, and the tears streaming down her momma’s face. As Holly had grown older, she had begun to see what other demons of the marshlands meant by niceness not being a virtue, but a weakness.
And it started to get to her.
Where would politeness get her in a world like this? Certainly not where she wanted to be. She loved her little family, she really did, but she couldn’t take being cooped up in that house anymore. She wanted to do more. To be more than what she was, and she couldn’t do that if she stayed there. She remembered talking turned to concern-laced tones, turn to shouting, then finally silent weeping as a door slammed so harshly it nearly ripped off its hinges.
They couldn’t tell her what to do anymore, she was an adult! She knew what she was getting herself into!
She knew what she had wanted to do now.
…Or, at least, that’s what she had believed.
Oh, how wrong she’d been.
She had gone to the ruler, asking him what she could do for more status, for more power; to finally be recognized not as the runt at the bottom of the food chain, waiting to be picked away by some higher-ranking demon. She wanted to be respected, and had blindly agreed when her ruler told her he could make that happen, if only she did him a little favor.
She had always been dense when it came to not realizing when she was being used.
One thing had led to another, and she now had his symbol forever burned into her flesh. She may not belong to him anymore, but it was still a painful reminder of her various mistakes. So, she kept it hidden, covered by a glove that held heaps of sentimental value to her. It was funny, in a melancholic sort of way. Even in death, did her companion protect her from the chains that had bound her.
…She had made so many mistakes.
She hoped Lena didn’t blame her, even if she completely deserved it.
She hoped Ophelia wasn’t annoyed with her, having clinged to her so many times throughout their travels, knowing fully well that the rogue wasn’t one for attachment.
She hoped her parents still loved her.
…How long had she been walking?
Once more, time had seemed to escape her, as her body moved on its own to its own destination.
For once, Holly felt very little. Not completely numb, but close to it. The only thing keeping it that way was a shred of anxiety that wouldn’t let her mind rest. And she hated it.
Thoughts of “what if they won’t take me back?”, and “what if I’m left all alone again?” plagued her mind like an illness, a dark oozing sludge that wouldn’t retreat no matter what she did. A more depressing thought of “serves me right” worked its way into the sludge, and quickly began to spread. She continued on that way for a while, until a shred of light began to fight back against the darkness, saying that her parents were “good people,” and that “they will love her no matter what”. That brightness burned the edges of the sludge away, reassuring her brain that “they would never abandon her!”. Those thoughts kept her body pressing forward towards its destination, one cloven hoof at a time.
Her entire trip had consisted of this, the metaphorical angel and demon sat not on her shoulders, but within her mind, warring with one another for dominance. In the end, neither would win, as the young tiefling would wave them out of her mind like one would wave away smoke as her destination came into view.
“They don’t want you anymore, you left them!” The faint whispers of the metaphorical demon still lingering as her pace slowed, but didn’t stop. “There’s still time to turn around!”
She was tempted to do so, very tempted, but then the whispers of the angel returned. “That’s not true and you know it! Family fights sometimes, but Willow and Georgiana still love you!”
The young demon sighed, and whisked them away once more, more finite this time. She slowly came to a stop and took in a deep breath, letting it out after some long, tense moments.
“There’s no backing out now.”
Three very hesitant knocks to the old wooden door before her.
Seconds that lasted eons passed.
Her heart beat loud in her ears and lodged in her throat.
Silence…
…
“…Holly?”
A beat passed.
“…Hi, momma.”
The young demon braced herself, ready for that old familiar door to slam in her face.
She was completely prepared for rejection.
…She wasn’t prepared for a pair of deep red arms to embrace her, pushing her nose into the crook of a very warm neck framed by long, black wavy locks.
She wasn’t prepared for the tears drenching her shoulder.
She wasn’t prepared for this.
The young tiefling continued to stand in complete shock before another voice registered in her ears.
“…Holls?”
Hearing the familiar nickname, red eyes slowly looked up to meet shining amber ones that were quickly gathering with tears.
“…H-Hi, mum.” Her voice cracked.
Another beat of silence before her name was whispered again.
“Holly?” It was said so carefully, so fragile, as though it were made of porcelain that would shatter in the lightest of breezes.
“Holly…Holly!” Willow exclaimed, before tackling the other two in a bear hug, rolling them down the few porch steps and onto the lawn, tears flowing in full force.
“D-Don’t do that eva’ again, young lady! You scared us shitless runnin’ off like dat!” There was no bite in her bark, as she only held the young demon tighter, running her fingers through tight black curls, reassuring herself that what she was seeing wasn’t an illusion. She breathed a heavy, shuddering sigh when she realized her baby was right here.
“W-We thought… we thought we’d l-lost you, Holly. That we would n-never find you.” A second, softer voice joined in, albeit shakily. A red clawed hand slowly reached up to gently cup her cheek, thumb gently wiping away the tear that had rolled down her face.
When had she begun crying?
Something inside her cracked, and the dam broke.
Tears began to flow harder now, accompanied by soft sniffles that gradually turned into loud, wailing sobs that echoed across the surrounding marshes as she hugged her little family tighter. She buried her head into one of their chests, taking comfort in their gentle caresses and kisses to anywhere they could reach. Her tail wrapped around the hand that was running through her hair, squeezing it tightly in reassurance that she was right here, and that she was okay.
Georgiana nestled into the crook of her wife’s arm as Willow hugged the both of them tighter, nuzzling her forehead against Holly’s in that oh so familiar way. Their horns knocked together gently, and that action only spurred the youngest tiefling to sob harder, her cries becoming louder and more high-pitched in tone. She began to blather and tear in her native tongue of Infernal, her begging for forgiveness not going on deaf ears. Her mothers understood every word she said.
“I-I’m sorry! I’m so so sorry! I s-should’ve listened! You told me not to go, b-but I didn’t listen! You were right, and I’m so, so sorry!” She wailed.
And in that language, they spoke right back.
“Oh, Holly, it’s okay! I-It’s okay, kiddo… you’re okay…” Spoke the howling voice of Willow. “We ain’t mad at ‘ya! We-we’re just glad you’re home!”
“Y’mean, y’don’t h-hate me?” The little demon sobbed.
She felt soft red arms hug her tighter. “No, sweetheart, never. W-We could never hate you! Ever!” Whimpered Georgiana.
Holly unburied her face from Willow, turning to look at her momma. She sniffled.
“Even after… all that I did? All t-that I said?”
Georgiana just gave her a wobbly, watery smile.
“Of course not, darling. W-we may fight,” she paused to wipe at a tear of her own, then continued, “but we would never hate you.”
“Yer momma’s right y’know, runt. We may not agree on everythin’, but that’ll neva’ stop us from lovin’ ya.” Willow reassured, gently rubbing her horns against Holly’s in comfort. She let out a quiet chuckle.
“Yer stuck wid us, kiddo. Whether ya like it or not.”
At this, Holly’s tears of sorrow and fear turned into watery giggles of relief, the occasional sob still mixed in as her words of gratitude began to taper off into high-pitched whines and whimpers, causing her mothers to hug her impossibly closer to them.
They stayed huddled together like that on their lawn for an unknown amount of time, none paying any mind to their surroundings. The two loving parents cradled their baby huddled close in their arms, said child not paying any mind to anything but the two tieflings embracing her.
Holly may have made mistakes, but she had also made accomplishments as well, and now she knew, that no matter what, she would have the support of her little family huddled around her, and she couldn’t ask for more than that.
For the first time in a long while, Holly’s smile was genuine.