In the early hours of eight in the morning, little Gabbrielle had just woken up from her slumber and was now getting ready for the day.
Today was a very important day in Sheol, and she was going to have to put a bit more effort into her look than normal.
She started out by ducking into her bathroom to take a short bath and shake off the lingering drowsiness.
Once out, she put on a very thick, fluffy bathrobe that bordered on looking like a mink coat.
She took a seat at the small desk inside of her room, and got to work on some small maintenance.
After combing her hair, she opened up her jewelry box and found every precious gem imaginable in the form of earrings, necklaces, brooches, and anything else her father thought to gift her randomly.
"What do you think would suit me the best?"
A shuffling noise came from underneath the covers before a familiar black puppy poked it's head out into full view.
Little Black is Thea's own personal pet, but sometimes the former guard dog of Helheim comes to hide in the room of the third princess when he is tired of being suffocated by breasts.
The small dog leapt out of Gabbrielle's bed and trotted over to her side.
She lifted him up so that he could take a look inside of the box and waited for his all important decision.
"...Arf."
"Amethyst earrings, huh? Extraordinary taste you have."
The decision made, Gabbrielle started planning how she would get ready for the day, when suddenly there was a knock at her door.
Gabbrielle waved a hand to open it, and was relatively surprised to find Lailah standing outside.
"Mama? I thought that you were supposed to be getting ready?"
Like Gabbrielle, Lailah also had on a bathrobe and her hair was wrapped up in a white towel, ready for styling.
She stepped inside and closed the door behind her before coming to Gabbrielle's side.
"I am, but I stole a moment to sneak away from Oshun while she helps the other girls with their wedding looks..."
If Gabbrielle wasn't able to sense that something was wrong with Lailah by her demeanor alone, then the way she depressingly rested her head on her shoulder was a dead giveaway.
"M-Mama?"
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇt"I guess you were right, darling. This foresight divinity wasn't just for the hell of it. I had my first vision this morning... about our family."
Almost immediately, Gabbrielle felt her heart drop.
Seeing the future is a tricky thing even for gods; hence why only a few have the ability.
Only the Norns and Fates have the ability to see it constantly without interruption, and some say that is the reason why they lack their sanity.
'Man often meets his fate on the road he takes to avoid it.'
The path to self destruction is paved with the bodies of beings who have tried, and failed, to avoid fates that they have seen in visions.
Lailah is paranoid enough about their family's safety as it is, so Gabbrielle could have only imagined the toll it was taking on her.
"This vision... what was it about?" Gabby asked softly.
"He did it... after eating that Yaldabaoth person, he gained all of his knowledge and memories.."
Already, Gabbrielle was beginning to see the problem.
"He tried to fuse his two elements in his hand... he created something unlike anything I have ever witnessed in my life ad then he was just...gone." Lailah whimpered.
Gabbrielle ended up handing her mother a few tissues to wipe her eyes before she continued.
"I could feel that he was still alive but h-he was so far that I couldn't hear him... I could hardly feel him... I couldn't get to him."
Gabbrielle ran her fingers though her hair while she tried to calm her throbbing headache.
"The energy you saw father create was something called Empryreal, or Mediae. It is the unified form of the two celestial energies, and at it's conception, it creates a phenomena called a Big Bang.When used inside of an aeon, it eviscerates everything that exists inside of them, down to the most insignificant ant, and creates a blank slate. Hence the reason why Aeons are usually spat out as soon as they come into being. No one wants to be overtaken.
Father was about to become our existence's new... everything. " Gabbrielle explained.
Was Lailah awestruck by what her husband was fated to accomplish? Sure. What loving wife wouldn't be?
But ultimately, she wanted her husband to be present, not all powerful.
She would trade everything they had in an instant and live in a little wooden shack if it meant that he would never leave her side for a single moment.
Gabbrielle gave her mother's hand a firm squeeze and tried to offer her some much needed reassurance.
"Do not worry. This fate is easily avoidable so long as father doesn't eat his enemy. There are other ways to cement his permanent victory."
Lailah seemed to perk up at this realization.
She had been so caught up in the terror and stress of seeing her soulmate literally vanish right before her eyes that she didn't realize how easy it would be to avoid this unfortunate outcome.
"T-That's right...! I-I'm sorry, you must think your mother is so silly.."
Gabbrielle wrapped her mother in the most adorable hug that she could muster.
"I understand. Ibelieve that I would be in a similar state as you if I witnessed father leave... just the thought of it fills me with terrible heartache."
At that moment, those words were the best ones that Gabbrielle could have said to her mother.
Ultimately, Lailah just wanted to feel like she wasn't crazy for being shaken this hard.
And now that she had that, a relief washed through her system that she didn't even know how to process.
"Thank you, my darling… Mommy loves you very much, you know that?"
Gabbrielle blushed and just hugged her mother tighter.
The two of them pressed their foreheads together in a tender dragon gesture, and basked in the reassuring moment.
Again, Lailah was stunned by her daughter's profound depth of knowledge and insight; as well as the burden that she must have carried with it.
"I can imagine how lonely you must have felt for all of that time… holding onto all of that knowledge must have been alienating on its own, but the way you lived is.."
"It was not too bad, I assure you. I didn't know what I was missing before, so I never really thought much about it beforehand.
But now, I can indeed not imagine a life where I have to live as I did before. Such is the miracle of family."
Lailah laughed happily as she planted a small kiss on her daughter's forehead.
At that moment, there was a loud bang as the rest of the wives came rushing in, along with Oshun.
All were in bathrobes, and in the process of getting their hair done in ways that were most fitting for them.
They were gorgeous like none other, but as panicked as they could be.
Bekka: "There you are!"
Erica: "We were freaking out!"
Tatiana: "I-I don't feel pretty, do I look pretty?!"
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmLisa: "I-I think I'm too bloated, what if I don't fit into my clothes in a few minutes?!"
Seras: "Audrina made sure we can all polymorph, just shrink your stomach!"
Lisa: "S-So you think it needs to be shrunk?! Y-You're so mean..! WAAAHHH!!"
Seras began to apologize profusely while the rest of the wives crowded around a sobbing Lisa.
As a storm deity, her turbulent emotions caused arcs of bright blue lightning to run across her body, and a little storm cloud to form above her head.
The love goddess Oshun took a moment to bury her head in a nearby corner.
'N-No more dragon weddings… I can't take much more of this… I don't know if I am going to last through the day… I hope I die halfway through.'
Ironically enough, no one seemed to be comforting the woman who needed it the most.
Gabbrielle looked at the small puddle forming within her room and then returned her gaze back to Lailah.
"…Would this also be considered the miracle of family?"
"Eh, more like the miracle of love." Lailah said fondly. "There is nothing in life that makes you feel more insecure, worshipped, nervous, or fearful. But it is without a doubt the best thing that I have ever subjected myself to."
Gabbrielle stared at her mother fondly as she pulled out a pen and notepad. "That was beautiful, mama. Mind if I use that?"
"Hahaha! I do actually! You can't just steal my vows to your father, little miss. What I just gave you was a little sneak peak."
"Tch."
"Don't 'Tch' me!"
Gabbrielle giggled as Lailah tickled her fiercely and the two of them shared another soft moment.
It would have likely continued for longer, but Gabbrielle suddenly thought of something that made her pause.
"I wonder what father's vows will sound like..?"
At this, Lailah grew a large, dopey smile on her face.
"Your father is truly the most romantic being that has ever breathed..! I am sure that he has written something that will bring us all to tears and reaffirm exactly why we love him so!"
- In Abaddon's Bedroom
Currently, the appointed 'most romantic being who has ever breathed' was sitting in his pajamas on the couch.
Resting in his lap was a blank piece of paper with the word 'Vows' written across the top.
"I'm so fucked…"