No one would blame Angela for being surprised by Nemesis. Hell, he was surprising himself with how much he cared for her and trusted her as much as he did. The mismatched pair had months before been sure that they couldn't be compatible and look at them now. Getting cozy with one another and confessing their innermost thoughts to one another. In his past, he was sure he would have been fine with fewer interactions with her in his life but now it was different. Now, he wanted more as she did. "I thought you couldn't stand me either", he commented with a rose brow. "You know what I was capable of before. Pity them now that I'm a god." He laughed but at the same time it was a good possibility that he could snuff out competition should they get too out of line with their position or hurt Angela somehow. Even more, if the children were hurt, then they would really suffer a punishment that the demons would sing about and make the strongest of angels tremble with fear. 

"You and Celeste both, probably. "

"Perhaps you are right. Ever since I started this family, I have been particularly attached to them. Even…Ivan. Please don't tell him that. As much as I can't stand him, he is still blood and my son of sorts. Like Toya is to you, Ivan is the sort that could drive you up the wall yet when trouble brews, he's the first to defend me and the family." He remembered when Dalanesca had struck her down. If it had happened now, he wouldn't have rested until he would have gotten his pound of flesh from her. Perhaps it was that his emotions were getting high from thinking of it at this moment but he had to remind himself that it hadn't been her who did the deed. Shaking it off, he looked to his lover and smiled before taking in her kiss. Such moments didn't come too often and when they had, he partook in them with no shame. 

 "Nerezza wouldn't have to worry about Sergei. He knows of chaos, having lived here and knows of my past. The idea of me taking in another wasn't taboo, it was shocking for him to learn it was you, my little temptress." He pointed at her wardrobe. "But he respected you even before the arrangement when he was old enough to learn how he came to be. He swears that he owes you his life and trust." The boy was growing up to be a fine man, a better man than his father was no matter in what life he lived. Part of him knew it was because of how his beautiful Celeste was a great mother to him. "Lucian…well, Rezza might have needed to whup him a little, I guess.", he joked. 

Nemesis released her from his grip, seeing what she had up her sleeve next. He took his refilled glass and listen just as he was about to sip on the fine wine. She was right, with all this talk they were doing about marriage being a reality for them. "I suppose it is. Time flew by us without me realizing it." He did want to be formal though when it came to the whole thing, starting with the proposal. This hardly counted as one but why spoil the moment? "Before I accept that title, I do have something I want to share with you." He stirred his glass around a bit before he stared at her. 

"I love you, Angela. A part of me has since before the twins were born but circumstances kept us apart and things made it more complicated later on. I thought that I stopped by the time we met again here, but now I think I was fooling myself." He went and kissed her again, this time there was more fiery passion behind it than before.

There was a chuckle from the goddess as she shook her head. “You’ve always been powerful but now you are borderline unstoppable. You’ve always been a good ally though and you’ve never hurt me but I’ve always pitied those who went against you.”

Angela made a face a bit and tilted her head. “I fear that Ivan doesn’t like me. His recent activity around me is troublesome. Though I do know that he won’t move against you… I do wish this was a smooth process.” At least the children were taking to it well.

His smile warmed her heart as they kissed and she found herself happy with the situation, after all, it was one she thought would never happen and she didn’t dare dream of it. “I think it was shocking for everyone but Nerezza and Celeste.” She chuckled more. “I do love Sergei as my own and I’m glad he trusts me like that though.” She made his life possible and she didn’t regret it for a second. There was a slight snort from her as she thought of Lucian being beat by his sister and she shook her head, “Don’t give the boy a panic attack.” She was joking with him now as she knew how Nerezza could be with her brother.

“Also, if you think this is tempting… Well…” She bit her lip a little and started to laugh as she immediately played it off. “You’ll find out.”

Now they had their wine and she was sitting upright next to him. “Isn’t time always flying by for people like us?” She tilted her head a little. “It’s the little ones who make us slow down and watch them grow but once they are grown it seems we speed right back up.” For a moment her smile wavered but it came back once she heard his words.

“I love you too. Maybe I always have just a little but your love for our kids was what shined the brightest to me. It showed me who you were for your family.” She kissed him back and snuggled him close as the passion grew. She got ahold of his bottom lip for a minute and almost giggled as she let go and put her wine glass down.

“Celeste showed me my room already… She also said you weren’t allowed to sleep in her room tonight. SOOOO,” Angela stood up and took his hands. “I think you’ve been good enough,” She pulled him up to her and kissed him again. “For a treat,” she spoke in between small tiny kisses. “And I do have one for you.” She had been pulled him with her up the stairs. She stopped every few steps to kiss him again before she got to her own room. Pulling him in she closed the door and sat on the large bed before him. “You can come see what I’m hiding from you now. If you can win at fighting me that is.” Angela was certainly playful now but she couldn’t wait for him to actually get the robe off of her for his treat. She was actually going to wrestle him though until he won against her so it would be interesting.

He gave it some real thought; it hadn’t quite been on his mind of how powerful he was back on DaeLuin. He had been a dark, callous, cruel and sinister force that plagued whatever and whoever crossed him. He led armies and then later one of the greatest families of vampires that realm had ever seen. Along with the skills both blade and psionic magics held perfected for centuries, Nemesis had indeed been someone many wouldn’t cross. And now, he held much more power in his pinky finger than he had ever hoped to use. Fortunately, he had learned some of the harshest lessons of his life- humility, patience, and controlling his volatile temper when he needed to. “Perhaps. I simply don’t let it go to my head. I’ve done that far too many times before that this time, I will avoid the nature that I’ve seen others delve in.” He knew from first hand of how many had abused the power and those that had fallen weren’t quite the same. That is if they came back at all from the fall from grace.

“Ivan is harmless unless Celeste or I tell him to kill, or if anyone hurts Ayla, his mate. His nature is that of a whirlwind- no one knows what he will do but much of it is foolishness. He won’t touch you or the children.” Besides, even if he was wrong, one of them would rip his throat out. It was something he looked forward to sometimes, but not at the expense of the kids or Angela.

He figured as much that she loved Sergei and was easily willing to take him as her own son, just as Celeste was with the twins and especially Emry. That girl was going to be spoiled rotten by just the two of them. “Well, she orchestrated it, and Nerezza was the one that hoped for it since she was a small girl. I’m surprised that even to this day, she had carried some hope for us.” Nemesis then thought about how she had said earlier that she felt his faint presence and wondered if he had given up too early in his search for them. No, he couldn’t have found them until this recent century. There was still one more person that needed to know of this, but Angela said she would handle it. The question was as to how Raeguel would take to this news. It was a thought that the god sought to drown for the time being, and with the goddess with him, it was as simple as the head roll he gave to her when she started her playful bit.

He was looking forward to whatever game she had schemed up.

“Perhaps that explains a lot. I didn’t get to spend as much time with them as I’d hoped, and Sergei practically sprouted during the years. Time is especially irrelevant now, but it will slow down as you said for the latest little ones.” He was drawn into the fire that threatened to be an inferno between them with the kiss, but she slowed down the pacing where he yearned for more. It was only then that she stroked them further, informing him where he would likely be sleeping tonight and he grinned as he rose to his feet and followed her and the trail of kisses all the way to the room prepared for her.

He moved to a sitting Angela as though she was his prey; eyes were on that robe of her and were envisioning what could possibly be beneath it. “Is that so? I like the challenge, Angela”, he breathed out moments before he pounced onto her and they began to wrestle. This time, he would have to work for it and she proved to be no slouch as she resisted. A part of him underestimated or perhaps forgotten how much strength she had despite not being a fighter. The two rolled about the bed with him trying to undo the knot and she kept him from doing such. All that could be heard was laugher and bumps on the wall every now and then as the two kept it up until he was on top of her, his forearm pressed against her throat and his hand at the knot as fingers began to work on it. “Is that the end, my love”, Nemesis gloated a little. He was sure the game was in his favor as the robe was giving way to show him the treat she had.

“I thought you would,” Angela almost purred up at him. Her green eyes were more like a green and red sea now as she took him in. It was probably quite easy for the regular everyday male to get lost in them but for a god-like Nemesis, it wouldn’t be a problem at all. The moment he had pounced she had been waiting for him and she took it in stride as they played that little wrestling game for a good thirty minutes or so. There was so much laughter coming from both of them.

It looked like he had underestimated her a bit but the vaewolf god was the physically stronger god and it showed when ultimately he had her pinned down. She was breathing heavily as he pressed his arm against her neck. “Ohhh, ya know. Healing Goddesses can’t be good at everything,” there was a light chuckle from her as their eyes held onto each other. She could tell that he would be ready to move if she did and he probably could counter whatever strategy she had to get out from under him.

Underneath the black silk was a black lace teddy that deeply cut down her cleavage to her navel. It was the least amount of clothes he had ever seen her in besides, well, when she got pregnant with the twins… but sometimes the surprises were well worth it. “Well? Does this scream… The future Lady of Fear and Darkness to you?” There was a joke somewhere she was sure of it but she didn’t want to give it away too much.

Her hands finally were able to reach up as he stopped pinning her. Her painted nails swiped quickly down his shirt ruining it. There were many things she figured Nemesis liked and perhaps that was one of his favorites. Pulling him down to her she kissed him tenderly and smirked at the prospect of what the night would bring.

From there, the gods spent long hours entertaining one another and used their statuses to forget about sleep for the time being. Most would be dead or couldn’t move but the two of them managed with incredible stamina that only an immortal would have. By the end of it all, Angela was curled up in Nemesis’s arms. Her head was snuggled against his chest and her eyes were watching the flames of the fireplace in their room. It was keeping the cold out and it was rather nice with the vaewolf’s own body heat to keep her warm.

“Seems a lot better than before,” she chuckled as she moved her head so she could look up at him. It had been so long ago she wasn’t even sure if she could remember it in full detail. Softly she pressed her lips to his chest and for once she looked rather content. Her mind began to drift and she frowned deeply. “I don’t mean to ruin the mood but I’m afraid I’ve had something on my mind and it’s started to bother me heavily,” the goddess wasn’t used to opening herself up to him but in order to make what they had work she was going to have to change that. “…Drae hasn’t come home since the agreement was hatched. I can’t find him and Wis has been asking where he is. I’m more scared for Wis than I am Drae. He can handle himself but she is so young… She’s used to having a father where the others aren’t. I don’t really know what to do.” She didn’t dare ask him to take Wisteria on… What if he didn’t want that?

Nemesis clicked his tongue at her as his eyes watched hers. He was panting a bit with the struggle she managed to put up until he was able to assert his dominance over her. “None of us are good at everything. But you are good at what you are capable of.” His words played around a bit with their meaning, but he wasted no more time in undoing her robe and marveled at the surprise in store for him. It was far from the slightly more conservative lingerie that she bore the night they conceived Nerezza and Lucian. He supposed that there were some parts of her that he hadn’t known of, not that it was the closest thought on his mind at the moment. A hand shamelessly traveled up her curves from her hip all the way to the nape of her neck as he released her.

He realized his folly only when Angela reached up and his shirt ripped apart. Instead of getting annoyed, it merely drew him in further the rabbit hole as they embraced. This wasn’t merely a lust-driven encounter that would be shared briefly like before- no as the night progressed, there were deeper, unresolved feelings that both parties were forced to admit and it showed physically as they savored every touch and kiss as they melded into one another. While he loved Celeste as much as any devoted husband could, Nemesis was still cautious in being rough with her due to her elf heritage- but Angela could handle it well as he would learn.

By the end of it, they were resting from their love-making in each others’ arms. He was quiet and motionless, save for his chest that ebbed and flowed as he breathed with her on it. “Better be careful”, he spoke softly, his eyes moving down to her, “You might end up with twins again, or triples this time.” Of course, it was merely a joke as his arm draped around her back and hip. Once again he found his face full of red hair and looked as though he was welcoming sleep when he heard her voice. From the tone, it was something concerning and Nemesis made sure to stay awake to hear it.

“Thought you could find anyone easily, as long as they are earth… Is it possible he may be someplace airborne or at sea?” He hardly was familiar with Drae, but his disappearance didn’t seem to make any sense to him. His head lifted to the ceiling and sharply exhaled. “It could be that he fell into the same fate that awaits many when they Fall. I have seen, as you have, what happens to most of them. I can only think of a handful that has survived through it.” He caressed her tenderly as he thought of the effects her father’s absence would have on Wis. She was still too young to understand everything. “She seemed to take a liking to me tonight, Angela. Once we are wed, I can step in if you wish.”

He looked at the goddess, “I promised to protect her and the others, and part of that is to make sure that she’s loved and cared for. You didn’t think that I wouldn’t recognize that responsibility, did you?” He carried on with a small smile and kissed her forehead. “Worry not about her. I can only hope that she will accept me.”

There was a snort and then a giggle that left the red head’s lips. “I do try and so do you…” Finally, he got to his prize and she adored him from her position. She watched his eyes and his lips for the reaction she had tried hard to get, he didn’t disappoint. Her skin shivered as his hand came up her and she merely smiled once he released her.

Their game seemed to continue once she spurred him. They did, after all, have feelings they had to resolve here and now, at least she thought it was best that way. By the end of their little game, she curled up with him. He was holding her which made her a lot more comfortable and it was different than last time. Especially since last time was more a hello goodbye situation. “Don’t joke like that,” Angela chuckled a bit up at him. “The twins were a handful enough.”

He listened to her concern and she was pleased since from the way he took his breaths he had begun to think about slumbering. “It’s entirely possible. It’s true I can find anyone but there are places that not even I can look. On Parvpora, you could easily hide from me I think.” She nodded up at him. “I may not lose much potency but I can be overridden… I think.” She wasn’t going to bet on that horse just yet. “Aye, that’s what I am afraid of. I helped Xunatar survive his fall but maybe I didn’t do enough for Adraejen. I can’t help everyone… Even I’m not capable of that despite how many believe so.”

Angela’s eyes lit up a bit and she nodded. “I think Wis would like that. Even if Drae does show up… You by all rights would be her stepfather. You don’t need to shy away from my children, they accept most and love most. Even if some of them are pains in my ass from time to time.”

Ang snuggled into him and shook her head. “No, generally when you make a promise you are thorough with it. I suppose that even I have fears that make no sense.” She knew that he would take care of them just as he had taken care of the twins when they were young. “We’ll have to see what the days bring us.”

The following days were filled with getting Nerezza up on her feet. Angela was in and out of the house constantly because of her duties, they never did stop and they were many. Which meant that Nemesis and his kind were often left with Wisteria, the twins, Emry, and Kaiser. It was busy but it was more fulfilling than anything. “I’m going to have to tell Raeguel,” Angela finally got time to talk to both of the twins. “I will need your support more than anything. I love both of them dearly and I refuse to choose… but I don’t want any fighting.”

Nerezza nodded and looked down at Emry who was sleeping in her arms. “I’ll do whatever it takes Mama. I love them both too.”

Angela reached out and rubbed little Emry’s white hair. “Then I’ll set everything up. Just be prepared for that fight… and please take care of yourselves. You can go home now all of you.” Angela helped with getting them home and she kissed Nemesis farewell for the time being.

There were jobs to be done and this one, in particular, wasn’t going to be great.