Natasha's eyes stayed locked on the creature, her voice dropping lower. "Alex… that's not exactly reassuring."
He smirked faintly, leaning back against the pillows like having a molten-silver, six-eyed serpent draped across his chest was the most normal thing in the world. "It's just Nyx. My pet. She bites me whenever she's hungry—even if it's the middle of the night."
Natasha blinked at him. "Your pet bites you for food? What are you, her midnight snack dispenser?"
Nyx's forked tongue flicked, and she slithered higher along Alex's shoulder, curling lazily around his neck. The faint heat radiating from her body was strangely soothing—like a living heat pad—if you ignored the wings, the unnatural eyes, and the fact she looked like she could swallow a small dog whole.
"Not exactly a snack," Alex said, stroking the smooth, metallic scales with two fingers. "More like… a blood tithe."
Natasha's eyebrows shot up. "You're joking."
The serpent tilted her head toward her, all six eyes focusing at once. The look wasn't hostile, but it was… evaluating, as if Nyx was deciding whether Natasha was friend, foe, or food.
Natasha shifted back slightly. "Uh-huh. Yeah, she's totally friendly."
Alex chuckled under his breath. "She is. Just don't startle her—or touch her wings."
Nyx let out a low, almost purring hiss and brushed her cool-hot snout against Alex's jaw, as if to remind him it was still feeding time.
Natasha shook her head slowly. "You know, most people have cats for this kind of middle-of-the-night harassment."
"Cats can't guard against astral assassins," Alex replied, completely serious.
That earned him a long, suspicious stare."…I feel like I have a lot of questions and not nearly enough pizza left to process them."
Alex didn't keep her waiting. He summoned a blood-red crystal as Nyx lazily curled up on his chest like a cat.
"What was that?" Natasha asked, nodding at the crystal.
"These crystals are made from my energy—just condensed. I have the power inside me, and I refined it," he said.
She didn't fully understand, but she nodded anyway.
Alex held the crystal between his fingers, its dark-red glow pulsing faintly. Nyx's eyes snapped open, pupils narrowing like a predator spotting prey.
"You want it?" Alex asked with a small smirk.
The little creature didn't answer—just opened her mouth and let out a low, rumbling trill.
"Alright, but don't bite my fingers," he warned, bringing it closer.
Nyx snapped it up in one smooth motion, crunching down with audible delight. Her tail flicked lazily, but the way she chewed—slow at first, then with eager relish—was almost like a cat savoring the richest cream. The glow faded as the crystal dissolved, and a faint ripple of energy rolled from Nyx's body, making the air hum.
Natasha raised an eyebrow. "It eats… your power?"
Alex shrugged. "Think of it as… feeding her a piece of myself. Literally."
Nyx let out a satisfied chirp and nuzzled deeper into Alex's chest, clearly ready for a nap after the feast.
Alex leaned back against the bed, one arm draped lazily along the backrest while Nyx curled into his lap like a satisfied shadow. The faint hum from her body still lingered, as if she was digesting more than just energy—like she was weaving that power into herself.
Natasha tilted her head slightly, watching them. "You know," she said softly, "most people feed their pets snacks… not shards of their soul."
Alex chuckled, eyes still on the purring creature. "Nyx isn't just a pet. She's… part of me. The more she grows, the more I grow. We're linked."
Nyx shifted, opening one eye lazily to look at Natasha before letting out a faint, amused-sounding chirp—as if she understood and was mocking her for even asking.
Alex smirked. "See? She likes you… in her own little 'I might still eat you' way."
Natasha stepped closer, almost instinctively reaching out to touch Nyx. The moment her fingertips brushed the creature's head, a faint pulse of warmth passed through her hand, and her breath caught. "That's… not normal."
"Nothing about her is," Alex replied, his voice low but almost fond. "Or me."
Nyx gave a slow, feline stretch, then curled back up, her breathing syncing faintly with Alex's—two shadows sharing one heartbeat.
Natasha lingered a moment longer, fingers still resting lightly on Nyx's head. The warmth faded, replaced by a subtle thrum—like the whisper of distant thunder.
Alex didn't deny it. "Nyx sees everything I see. Feels everything I feel. And sometimes… things I don't." He reached up, brushing an idle strand of hair away from Natasha's face, his touch deceptively gentle. "Makes us… harder to surprise."
Nyx's tail flicked, almost in response, and Natasha caught the faint shimmer of dark light ripple along its edges.
"You're dangerous enough without something like this," she said, her tone hovering between intrigue and warning.
Alex smiled faintly, not breaking eye contact. "That's the point."
Nyx stirred again, lifting her head to nuzzle into Natasha's palm, almost affectionate—until her pupils narrowed into slits and she bared teeth that didn't look entirely physical. Natasha withdrew her hand slowly, instincts prickling.
Alex stroked Nyx's neck, murmuring something in a language she didn't recognize. The creature settled instantly, purring again—a sound like a lullaby laced with menace.
"Don't take it personally," Alex said. "She's… protective."
Natasha's brow furrowed, her voice dropping even lower. "Where did you even get her?"
Alex's smirk tilted just enough to make her suspicious. "Hell."
She gave him a flat, warning look. "Don't joke with me."
His gaze didn't waver. "I'm not."
The air seemed to tighten between them. Natasha studied his face for any sign of a smirk breaking into a laugh—but there was nothing. Just that calm, measured certainty that always made it impossible to tell when he was bluffing.
"You expect me to believe you waltzed into hell and… adopted this?" she asked, nodding toward Nyx, who was now lazily curling her tail around Alex's wrist as if she belonged there.
Alex's voice stayed quiet, but there was a weight to it that made the hair at the back of her neck rise. "I didn't find her—she found me."
Natasha stared at him, waiting for more. "What does that even mean?"
He shrugged slightly, as if the answer was obvious. "I summoned her."
Her eyes narrowed. "You summoned… that?" She glanced at Nyx again, taking in the gleam of molten-silver scales, the lazy flick of her forked tongue, and the six unblinking eyes that seemed to see far too much.
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