Reborn as a Succubus: Time To Live My Best Life!

Melisa sat on her bed. Next to her, Isabella looked like a drowned kitten, her usually perky fox ears drooping with the weight of the rain and her emotions.

[Fuck, she looks awful,] Melisa thought, her heart aching for her friend. [What the hell happened?]

"Izzy," Melisa said softly, reaching out to touch Isabella's arm. "What's going on?"

Isabella took a shuddering breath, her green eyes meeting Melisa's red ones. The pain Melisa saw there made her stomach clench.

"It's... it's Mom," Isabella began, her voice barely above a whisper. "I came home and... and..."

She trailed off. Melisa scooted closer, wrapping an arm around Isabella's shoulders.

"Hey, it's okay," Melisa soothed. "Take your time."

Isabella nodded, taking another deep breath.

"There were Shadow Mages," she continued, her voice stronger now. "At least ten of them. They'd broken in, and... and Mom..."

Melisa's eyes widened.

[Oh shit. Oh no.]

"I found her in the dining room," Isabella said, her words coming faster now, like a dam breaking. "She was just... lying there. Not moving. Not breathing. There was so much blood, all around her, Melisa.

So much."

Melisa felt some grief building up within her now too. Kimiko had been kind to Melisa, in the brief moments they interacted. And, she knew how close Isabella was with her. The thought of her having died...

"Izzy, I'm so sorry," Melisa whispered.

But Isabella shook her head.

"No, that's not... that's not the end of it," she said. "I tried to heal her. I tried everything I could think of. But nothing worked. And then..."

She turned to Melisa, that curious look intensifying.

"I remembered your spell. The one you used on the king, and on all those nim. I... I used it, Melisa."

Melisa blinked, confused.

"My spell? But that's just a healing spell. It wouldn't..."

"It worked," Isabella interrupted. "Melisa, it fucking worked. She's alive."

"..."

Melisa paused.

Her mind reeled, trying to process what Isabella was telling her.

[What the actual fuck? That's not... that's not possible. Is it?]

"But... how?" Melisa managed to ask. "Izzy, that spell... it's not meant to bring back the dead. It's just supposed to heal injuries."

Isabella's grip on Melisa's arm tightened.

"I know. But it did. And I think I know why," she said, her voice dropping to a whisper. "It's Blood Magic, isn't it?"

Melisa felt her blood run cold. She opened her mouth to deny it, to explain, but Isabella shook her head.

"It's okay," she said quickly. "I don't care. I'm just... I'm just glad it worked. But Melisa, the spell... it used the bodies of those dead Shadow Mages.

Like... like sacrifices."

Melisa's mind was spinning.

"Anyway," Isabella continued, "I-I'm fairly certain that spell of yours brought her back to life."

She'd known the spell was powerful, but this? This was beyond anything she'd imagined. The implications were staggering.

[I made a resurrection spell. Holy shit. I made a fucking resurrection spell.] She stopped herself. [Or, did I? I mean, why did it work out like that? And...]

"Melisa?" Isabella's voice broke through her thoughts. "Are you okay?"

Melisa realized she'd been silent for too long. She shook her head, trying to gather her thoughts.

"I... I don't know," she admitted. "Izzy, I swear, I had no idea it could do that. I was just trying to make a healing spell, not... not this."

Isabella nodded, a small, sad smile on her face.

"I believe you. And honestly? I don't care what kind of magic it is. It saved my mom. That's all that matters to me."

Suddenly, Isabella all but tackled Melisa. Melisa, now on her back, brought her hands up behind her.

They sat like that for a while, the only sound in the room their quiet breathing and the steady patter of rain against the window. Melisa's mind was still reeling from the revelations of the night, but she pushed her own confusion aside. Right now, Isabella needed her.

[I'll figure out the implications of all this later. For now, just be here for her. She must have been terrified.]

Suddenly, Melisa heard a knock faintly in the distance.

"I should go see who that is," Melisa said reluctantly, not wanting to leave Isabella alone.

Isabella nodded, wiping her eyes.

"Go ahead."

Melisa gave her friend's hand one last squeeze before standing up. She made her way downstairs, her mind still buzzing with everything Isabella had told her.

[First Isabella, now this. What else could possibly happen tonight?]

As she reached for the door handle, Melisa took a deep breath, steeling herself for whatever might be on the other side.

She pulled the door open, and her jaw dropped.

Armia stood on the doorstep, looking like she'd been through hell. Her shirt was covered in blood.

But it was the look in Armia's eyes that made Melisa's heart clench.

The usually proud, fierce darian looked... broken.

"Armia?" Melisa breathed, her voice barely audible over the sound of the rain. "What... what happened?"

Armia's lips trembled, and Melisa saw tears mixing with the raindrops on her face.

"... My brother's dead."

Without hesitation, Melisa reached out and pulled Armia into the house, closing the door behind her.

---

{Isabella}

Isabella stood in Melisa's garden, the rain having finally let up. The air was thick with the scent of wet earth and blooming flowers.

Her green eyes fixed on Melisa and Armia. The nim's purple hand ran up and down Armia's muscular back. Isabella realized how lucky she'd been.

She'd nearly lost her mother tonight. Armia hadn't been so lucky.

[Fuck,] Isabella thought, her tail swishing nervously. [What a shit show. Poor Armia.]

"I'm so sorry, Armia," Melisa was saying, her voice soft and soothing. "I can't even imagine what you're going through."

Armia's shoulders slumped, a far cry from her usual perfect posture.

"It happened so fast," Armia said, her voice barely above a whisper. "The Shadow Mages... apparently, they just appeared out of nowhere. My dad fought them off, but Darien..."

She trailed off, her voice cracking. Isabella felt a lump form in her throat.

[It's the same as what happened to Mom. Except...]

"I'm sorry," Isabella found herself saying. "I... I know what it's like. The Shadow Mages attacked my home too. My mom..."

Armia's head snapped up, her eyes wide with a mix of shock and something that looked almost like hope.

"Your mother? Is she...?"

Isabella shook her head quickly.

"She's alive. But it was close. If it wasn't for Melisa's spell..."

She saw understanding dawn in Armia's eyes, followed quickly by a flash of pain. Isabella winced, realizing too late how her words might sound to someone who'd just lost a loved one.

[Smooth move, Isabella. Real fucking sensitive.]

This wasn't something she was used to having to deal with.

"I'm sorry," she said again, feeling useless. "I didn't mean to... I just..."

Armia shook her head, cutting off Isabella's fumbling apology.

"It's okay," she said, though her voice was strained. "I'm... I'm glad your mother is alright."

An awkward silence fell over the garden. Isabella shifted uncomfortably, suddenly very aware of the damp clothes clinging to her skin and the exhaustion seeping into her bones.

"I should go," she said abruptly. "I need to check on Mom. I don't want to leave her alone for too long. If there's another attack..."

She let the sentence hang, the implication clear. Melisa nodded, understanding in her red eyes.

"Of course," she said.

"Go. We'll... we'll figure all this out later."

Isabella nodded, grateful for Melisa's understanding. She turned to Armia, wishing she had something more to offer than empty platitudes.

"Hey, uh, scales," she said, surprising herself with the sincerity in her voice, "if you need something, just... let me know, okay?"

Armia nodded, a ghost of a smile flickering across her face.

"Thank you, Isabella."

With one last look at her friends, Isabella turned and headed home, her mind racing with everything that had happened.

[What a fucking night,] she thought as she walked. [Shadow Mages, resurrections, death...]

The streets of Syux were eerily quiet, the usual bustle replaced by an oppressive silence. Isabella found herself jumping at every shadow, her hand straying to the wand at her hip more than once.

Finally, she reached her house. The door was still broken, hanging awkwardly on its hinges. Isabella stepped inside, her heart pounding.

"Mom?" she called out, hating the tremor in her voice. "You okay?"

For a moment, there was no response. Isabella felt panic rising in her throat.

[No, no, no. Please be okay. Please-]

"In here, sweetie."

Kimiko's voice, coming from the back of the house, sent a wave of relief washing over Isabella. She hurried towards the sound, her feet carrying her to the small sitting room at the rear of the house.

And there was Kimiko, standing by the window, a contemplative look on her face. She turned as Isabella entered, and for a moment, they just stared at each other.

Then Isabella was moving, practically throwing herself into her mother's arms. Kimiko caught her, as she always had, her embrace warm and familiar.

But as Isabella buried her face in her mother's neck, inhaling the comforting scent of her perfume mixed with something metallic and unfamiliar, she couldn't shake the feeling that something was... off.

She pulled back slightly, studying her mother's face. Kimiko's eyes, usually so full of warmth and mischief, seemed... different. Cooler, somehow. More distant.

[It doesn't matter,] Isabella told herself fiercely. [She's here. She's alive. That's all that counts.]

"Mom," she said, her voice choked with emotion. "What... what happened? Can you tell me?"

Kimiko sighed, running a hand through Isabella's damp hair.

"Oh, Bella," she said, her voice tinged with a weariness Isabella had never heard before. "It was just bad luck, really. I was handling them just fine, you know me. But one of them got lucky, slipped a knife between my ribs when I was distracted."

She shook her head, a rueful smile on her face. Stay connected via My Virtual Library Empire

"After that, well... it all went downhill pretty fast. Just goes to show, all it takes is one slip-up."

Isabella nodded, her throat tight. She wanted to apologize, to beg forgiveness for not being there, for not protecting her mother. But the words wouldn't come.

Instead, she asked:

"Do you... do you feel different? After..."

She couldn't bring herself to say "after dying." Kimiko seemed to understand anyway.

"Yes," she said slowly, as if choosing her words carefully. "I do feel different. But I'm not quite sure how to describe it. It's like... like something's shifted, inside. But I can't put my finger on what, exactly."

Isabella nodded, tightening her grip on her mother.

"It's okay," she said, surprising herself with the fierceness in her voice. "It doesn't matter. You're here. That's all I care about."

Kimiko's arms tightened around her in response, and for a moment, they just stood there, holding each other.

[We're okay,] Isabella thought, letting the relief wash over her. [We're alive. We survived. Everything else... we'll figure it out.]