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Not even Mira, who Zoey lived on the same wavelength as, realized how observant she could be. It made sense. Zoey had spent her whole life as the airhead, the daydreamer, the ditzy one, the person too much in the wrong ways. She understood how she seemed, as conflicted as she felt about it.
People just didn’t seem to realize that Zoey was the way she was because her brain couldn’t stop moving. Of course she noticed things! When she wasn’t a little zoned out, she took in every detail. She was always making notes of what could be a lyric. The world was a mess of pieces. Combining them was the foundation of every one of Huntrix’s songs.
Zoey had first spotted Rumi’s marks over a year ago. How could she not have? The three members of Huntrix spent all their time together. She hadn’t been sure how to bring it up, or if it was even worth it. What if Rumi wanted to bring it up her own way, in her own time? Zoey didn’t want to risk that.
And maybe she liked the way things were. Maybe Zoey didn’t want to shake the boat.
She knew she should address it. At first, Zoey hadn’t even believed what she’d seen, and had worried that Rumi was a traitor. No demon hid that well, and they certainly couldn’t mimic Zoey’s at-the-time-crush’s personality perfectly. So it was Rumi, not a demon pretending to be her. Zoey was sure of that. Still, she couldn’t didn’t want to believe someone she knew so well was a traitor. More than that, the idea of fighting Rumi made Zoey’s skin crawl and her heart ache.
Maybe Rumi was cursed. There had to be an explanation, one that would let them all be fine. What Zoey knew was that Rumi had earned a chance, and that she’d proven herself a demon hunter and a good person. She couldn’t be a heartless demon. She just couldn’t.
There was no way that Mira had also missed it for this long, right? So, what bothered Zoey the most was that Rumi didn’t trust the two of them enough to tell them the truth. It couldn’t be worse than it looked at a glance, it just couldn’t. Rumi might be scared, but she had to know Zoey just didn’t understand why Rumi wouldn’t tell the rest of Huntrix. There was no way Mira had also missed it for this long, right? Maybe she was scared, but she had to know that they loved her. Some marks wouldn’t change that.
Not with Rumi. Not after this much time.
Zoey forgot, at some point, that she wasn’t supposed to know. The knowledge had stayed in the back of her mind long enough that it became mundane. She was a pop star who hunted demons, it wasn’t that weird for Rumi to have some marks. Rumi got more and more secretive, and hid the marks better and better, but Zoey forgot that she was one of the people that they were hidden from.
When Rumi lost her voice out-of-the-blue at the same time that she started covering her neck, it was easy for Zoey to put together what was happening. And unfortunately, her mouth was a little faster than her common sense.
“So does the water, like, stop the marks? Or is it not actually helping?”
Rumi choked on her drink. Confusion and hints of anger spread across Mira’s face.
Oops.
“What do you mean? I don’t— What marks?” Rumi laughed nervously. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“The ones that look like demon marks?” Zoey’s voice shrank. Shit. She wasn’t sure how to back out of this one. “I thought they were a tattoo at first, but they looked too real.”
Mira leaned forward, elbows on her knees. “I’m sorry, what? Rumi, what haven’t you told me?”
“I thought it was a curse,” Zoey added. “Right?”
“I—” Rumi’s eyes darted towards the door as she crossed her arms. “Sure.”
“I knew something was off!” Mira added. “Are you a demon? Shapeshifting into our girlfriend, and pretending to be Rumi to infiltrate us?”
“No, no!” Zoey cut in. “This is really Rumi, she just—”
“Shut up, shut up!” Rumi’s voice rose in an overwhelmed crescendo. Zoey and Mira froze. “Congrats, Zoey! You know the big secret.” She let her jacket fall. Zoey stifled a gasp. She had been the one to suggest that the marks were the reason for all this, but she was still shocked to see how much of Rumi’s skin they’d begun to cover. “I’m half demon. And I fucking hate it. And now you two know, and you’re going to hate me too.” She stood up, movements harsh, and made it halfway to the door before Mira’s hand was gently around her wrist. It broke Mira’s heart to see the way Rumi’s eyes had started to water.
“Woah, girl.” Mira’s voice had an uncharacteristically gentle edge. “We aren’t going to hate you.”
“We’re not,” Zoey agreed. “You can’t control how you’re born. Some demon parent doesn’t define you.”
“It’s not like Zoey and I are normal either. Not that it’s the same, or even close,” she added, seeing Rumi’s raised eyebrow. “But. I get it, kind of. I’m not going to judge you for something out of your control. I know you. I know you’re not some evil heartless monster. You’re our girlfriend, and we love you.”
Rumi’s guarded expression fell a little. “Really?”
“Really, babe.” Zoey stood with a stretch to drape an arm around Rumi. “What’s made it better in the past? Holy water?”
“Maybe she needs a tattoo over it.”
“Um. No, and probably not? I haven’t actually tried, so…” Rumi leaned into Zoey’s touch. Even after all this time, it still sent little shocks of happiness through Zoey’s veins. “Honestly, I think telling you guys was what I really needed. That, and rest. After a few days, I should be able to get through a recording. If we’re lucky.”
“Awesome!”
“Bobby’s gonna love it.” Mira loosened her grip from Rumi’s hand, tracing up her arm. “And besides, on you, they’re pretty cute.”
“Really?”
“They make your eyes pop,” Zoey agreed. “It’s pretty.” She could see hints of a pinkish blush on Rumi’s cheeks.
Maybe Rumi wasn’t human, Zoey didn’t care enough to judge. No matter what, this was her girlfriend. The three of them were all demon hunters. Zoey had spent her whole life being a bit of a weirdo. Something like this couldn’t be enough to break them apart.
In the case that Rumi did turn out evil, like so many demons, Zoey knew in her gut that she wouldn’t regret giving her the benefit of the doubt. Not when she cared so much for Rumi. And especially not when she had so much more reason to trust her than to be wary.
