New Beginnings

With Christine's trial over, things pretty much returned to normal. Gallant's trial was even simpler, and he was sentenced to exile and his knighthood taken away. He accepted his sentence quietly and left town as soon as he was released. Despite everything, Marco hoped he would be alright out there.

It took months, but eventually Marco was fully accepted by the public. At least, no one was being particularly vocal about hating him anymore. In fact, most of what he heard about himself was very positive, and people were even beginning to talk about the idea of royals marrying non-royals more often, just for the difference in perspective they brought. Marco and Tom both regularly had interviews with various news agencies and talk shows, and would address public concerns and talk about what they would be doing next. They welcomed input on all of it, which proved to be helpful and only boosted the Underworld's approval of them.

Crime rates went down, literacy went up, and employment increased.

Tom and Marco arranged to meet with the merpeople as they had suggested before, and the negotiations were done on a rocky shore on Earth, with the two monarchs sitting with their legs in the water, Dreyak at their side, and a group of mer leaders from various ocean kingdoms floating with their heads above the water to speak to them. The discussion had been tense at first, but Marco did most of the talking, easing their concerns and apologizing for how his predecessors have treated them. His apology was accepted, though not without stern reprimand. In the end though, they were able to settle on trade agreements, and now their species maintained a peaceful alliance. And the king and lord went on to make treaties with other races, as well as updating the few that already existed, such as the one with Mewnie. That was less of a negotiation and more of a dinner party, but the terms worked out just fine for both of them. The economy has never been better and their subjects were happy. Things were good, and the monarchs were enjoying their role.

Sometimes though, when they got busy, Marco wished things were simpler. That he and Tom were just a couple who only had to worry about themselves, with no kingdom to run, just them and a house, and a minimum of three cats. They'd go to work and then their responsibility for others would be over once they got home.

But there were benefits to being lord. If Marco had a choice, he wouldn't change it. He knew he could do good here and he wanted to. He just occasionally thought about what could have been.

He and Tom made sure they put aside time for dates. They may be married, but that didn't stop them from going out together, to their favorite restaurants, movies, and parks. They regularly went up to Earth, getting away from the hot Underworld and going ice skating, something that Tom was surprisingly good at. He roller skated a lot and it was pretty similar in execution. Marco learned a lot of fun jumps and tricks from him. Regardless of what they did together, they had fun.

Then Marco's eighteenth birthday finally arrived. The intention had been to go hang out with Star and Janna, along with some other friends, at one of his favorite Mexican restaurants in his home town. But instead he and Tom got swamped with work and had to call it off last minute.

Of course they had to be busy. Why wouldn't they be? It was only his birthday. Nothing important.

"Babe, I'm sorry," Tom apologized from the other side of the table. He peeled a paper off his arm and sighed. "But we really gotta get through reworking this income tax, if we want to have enough for the infrastructure we have to…"

"I know," Marco snapped. Tom's ears drooped slightly, and Marco sighed, sitting back in his chair and rubbing his forehead. "Sorry. I'm not mad at you. I'm just… So tired. It's like we've been doing stuff nonstop since waking up and… My back really hurts. And I'm just not in a good mood for some reason."

Tom slowly set down his pencil and walked over to him. He stroked his palm along Marco's cheek, and Marco gripped it with both hands, holding it close and nuzzling him.

Tom frowned. "You're really warm. Even for a demon. How long has your back hurt?"

"Since this morning. I think I slept funny."

"Wouldn't surprise me." Tom leaned in to kiss his forehead. "Listen, after we finish this, we can celebrate your birthday. But our duties come before our own enjoyment."

"I know. Still sucks." Marco let go of him, turning back to the desk. Tom resumed his seat, and they got back to work.

It was another hour before they had the finances in order, and they called in their treasurer to take their paperwork and go check it over. Odds were that it would come right back with some sort of error, but that wouldn't be for a day, at least. Without any pressing responsibilities now, the monarchs were finally able to go to dinner. They've been working all day without pause except for meals. They were looking forward to relaxing before bed, and tomorrow, they planned to go out to eat with Marco's friends.

Marco began walking funny though, off-balanced, grunting with pain. Tom looked at him with concern, and Marco grabbed his arm for support.

"You sure you're okay?" Tom asked.

"Fine," Marco insisted. "Just sore."

"You don't need to hide anything. What's it really feel like?"

Marco thought about it, then said, "It's hard to explain. Just… It's a dull pain straight down my back. Two lines of it, on either side of my spine. Like… something's pressing on my back, almost. But from the inside."

Tom realized what was happening. "Oh. I think you're fledging."

"Fledging? I'm gonna get wings?"

"Yeah. That's the only thing it could be. You're getting wings!"

They were in the dining hall now, but that didn't stop Marco from leaping and exclaiming, "Cool, I can't wait!"

Several demons turned to stare at them. Marco cleared his throat and made an excuse, waving dismissively. They went back to eating.

Quietly, Tom said, "Let's hope they're faster than mine."

They went to sit down, digging into their meals. Marco did his best to ignore the pain by talking to Tom about random subjects and telling jokes.

But by the time the course was over, Marco couldn't hide it anymore. He was visibly shaking, sweating profusely, swearing under his breath. The pain had grown sharp and others were noticing, whispering to each other and glancing at him often.

Marco got up, intending to just sneak off and take aspirin. Tom went with him, holding his hand. But they were only halfway to the door when splitting pain cut Marco's spine in half lengthwise. He screamed and collapsed onto his knees, drawing everyone's attention.

Tom got down next to him, trying to help him up, but Marco jerked back. Eyes squeezed shut, he threw his head back and kept yelling. The back of his shirt shifted, and then wings burst out of his back, swinging up and open, blood flying off them.

Marco fell silent and the spectators let out awed gasps and exclamations.

"Holy shit, that hurt," Marco said, holding his head. He felt dizzy as he climbed to his feet.

Tom got up too, staring at his wings. "Whoa."

"I'm sorry I ever doubted how painful this is," Marco told him. "That was awful."

"Definitely," Tom agreed.

"You're staring at me. What do they look like?" Marco turned his head to look for himself.

"You look like an angel," Tom supplied.

Marco was stunned by the soft white wings he had grown. They were feathered like a bird's, small but elegantly shaped. Currently the feathers glistened with blood, but he could ignore that. He needed a shower anyway.

"I do," Marco admitted, curiously closing his new wings. Then opening them again. It was surprisingly easy. The feathers slid over each other perfectly with hardly any command from him.

"My beautiful dove," Tom murmured.

Marco's heart skipped a beat. He stepped in close and kissed Tom. His new wings fluttered behind him.

Tom held him close, hands sliding up his back, stroking his feathers. It felt nice, and Marco sighed, leaning against him. Meanwhile, the others in the room clapped for them.

They separated, and Judas called from across the room, "Marco! You didn't tell us it was your birthday!"

Marco chuckled, turning to look at him. In no time, the other had made his way over. "Oh, you know," Marco said. "We got really busy. But… Yeah."

"Well, happy birthday!" Judas clapped his hand on his shoulder, nearly knocking him over. "Your wings look stunning. Those white feathers are very unique."

Marco spread his wings out as wide as they could go. Their span was only about four feet. Like Tom's, they were only for display purposes, not for actually flying. They looked good, though. "I like them."

"I'm glad, because unless you cut them off, you're stuck with them," Judas said.

"I'd love to stay and chat but I need to go get washed off," Marco said, reaching back for Tom's hand. "It's been a long day."

"Right. See you tomorrow, my lord."

Marco had given up on telling him not to call him that. He just furled his wings against his back and walked out with Tom, sighing with relief at how the pain and irritation was gone.

"You really forgot that demons fledge on their eighteenth birthday?" Tom asked.

"No, but I didn't think I would. I wasn't born this way."

"No, but apparently Star made you a full-blooded demon. So you're gonna mature like us too. But hey, it's over. You have your wings. And they're beautiful."

"They'll be more beautiful once I wash the blood off."

"I don't know, I think the blood looks nice."

Marco snorted, and Tom bumped his shoulder against him.

They returned to their room, Marco peeling off his bloody clothes with distaste and leaving them in a pile, planning to clean them later. Or maybe he'll get a servant to do it. He didn't usually like to make them do things like that, but they were more than happy to serve, and he hated cleaning blood himself.

Deciding to worry about it later, he went and joined Tom in the shower. The hot water was soothing against his torn back, and for a while he just rested his head against the wall and let it rain down on him, streaming down his feathers and dripping to the floor. He had an awareness of every single primary, and could move them individually. It was strange, but he was getting used to it.

"Your back's pretty fucked up," Tom commented.

Marco rolled his eyes. "Thanks."

"But it'll heal fast. Here, let me clean it up." Tom picked up the body wash and poured some onto a cloth, gently cleaning the wounds. It stung, but it wasn't too bad. Marco just waited as he worked. Tom continued, "I feel like this marks a turning point, ya know? Yeah, you've been ruling alongside me just fine, but wings are a sign of maturity. You're a man now and you fit the title of lord much better. I think you'll find yourself receiving just a little more respect."

"Hm. If you say so. I still feel like a teen though."

Tom smiled and leaned over his shoulder, kissing his cheek. "I know. So do I." He reached down to grip Marco's hand. "But we're doing pretty good for a couple of old teens, huh?"

"Heh. Yeah." Marco turned his head to kiss him, and Tom leaned against his back, slowly petting his hip.

"We've been through a lot... especially you," Tom murmured. "But your angelic wings honestly give me hope. Here's to new beginnings, my beautiful dove."

Marco folded his wings like a bird would, nuzzling his husband lovingly. "I love you."

"I love you too."