Haven

In rural PA, a hidden community of nonhuman residents flourishes for nearly 200 years. A human stumbles into the town and finds herself greeted by two strangers. I suck at summaries.

The Haven was a small town located in rural Pennsylvania that was home to a variety of residents, none of which were human. It was a town where supernatural beings and cryptids could coexist and live out their lives in peace. It did not show on any maps and could not be found accidentally. The Haven’s founder had created the town so that only those seeking it with honest intentions would be able to enter. This had been a foolproof creation for nearly two hundred years and no human had ever discovered The Haven. Not until recently, however.

Venus was the first human to ever step foot in The Haven. She had been on the run from a sheltered life in desperate need of freedom. Growing up, she had felt out of place among the other kids and even her parents had not known what to do with her. While they may have loved her, they never understood her and so, after 22 years, Venus had decided to leave. Her only thought was to find a place to belong and fit in. A place where she would be accepted and understood. A place where she wouldn’t be ridiculed anymore.

Fared was the jinn who had created The Haven one hundred and eighty five years ago. When he heard of the human girl entering The Haven, he sprung into action. He had planned for this dreaded day, the day a haven would become infiltrated. However, upon finding the human talking to an imp as if it was the most normal thing in the world, he reconsidered. What had this girl gone through that seeing a fluttering imp with red skin and curled horns did not concern her in the slightest? When he approached, the humans intentions came to Fared’s mind and he understood her presence.

The imp’s name was Lucio. They had been the first to approach the oddly placed human. Her intentions had to have been honest and in good faith for her to have entered, so what was the harm? Lucio had asked the human her name. She had hesitated before answering, “Venus...Venus.” While Lucio was smart enough to realize this was not entirely truthful, they did not care. What was a name anyways? They offered their hand and made up a new name to fit their friendship. If from that moment on the human wanted to be Venus, the Imp wanted to be Lucio.

. . .

“Venus!” Fared called from downstairs. “Can you give me a hand with this?”

Venus sighed and sat up, glancing around her room. It was a small attic that had been hastily renovated into a living space with just a bed and some dressers. She had made it more roomy by adding posters and a speaker. Fared had let her paint the walls pink, purple, and yellow like the colors of her favorite moth.

“Coming!” She yelled in response, forcing herself to stand up. Stretching, she glanced around to find some clothing to cover herself with. Throwing on a black slip dress she found under her bed, she hurried down the stairs to find the jinn talking to an orc woman Venus did not recognize. She was tall, even for an orc, standing at a minimum of seven feet. She had a clean shaved head and piercing amber eyes. Tattoos curled around her muscular biceps and seemed to never stop. They made eye contact and Venus fought back a blush and smiled instead.

“What’s up?” She asked Fared, going around the desk to stand beside him. He handed her a pile of papers.

“Can you file these in the back for me?” He smiled apologetically. “I’d do it but there’s been an issue with the orc settlement and I want to focus on that.”

Venus glanced back at the strange woman. Orc’s preferred being solitary so The Haven had a separate area specific to orcs that was independently governed. It was rare to meet one inside central Haven.

“Yeah, I can do that,” Venus said. “Is everything okay?”

Before Fared could answer, the orc woman spoke.

“You are the human girl I heard about.” Her voice was course and brisk, but not harsh.

Venus put the paperwork on the desk and offered her hand before quickly withdrawing it. She still forgot that human customs and nonhuman customs differed greatly. She opened her mouth to apologize for the mistake but found her hand being grabbed and energetically shook, albeit clumsily.

“I am Borgack Ironforger. We have heard much about you. But also very little. It is interesting to meet you.”

Venus nodded, slightly dumbfounded. “It’s very nice to meet you,” she responded, flustered. “I like your tattoos. I’ve always wanted a tattoo but my parents said if I got one I’d go to hell. I want to do a lot of things that would send me to hell. But your tattoos are really cool. Did they hurt?”

She was rambling. She glanced back at Fared in a desperate attempt for help and he only laughed and looked the other way. Now Venus was blushing. She was horrible at first impressions and it didn’t help that she was speaking to a very hot woman.

Thankfully, Borgack seemed amused. She waited until Venus was done blabbering before folding her arms over her chest and shifting her stance.

“Thank you,” she started off in that course drawl. “My tattoos mean a lot to me. Some are cultural. Others are personal. I’m not sure I know this hell you speak of, but I would be curious to learn more. I would want to know where these tattoos will send me.”

She was teasing her, Venus realized. Her embarrassment grew and she wished she had stayed in bed rather than answering Fared’s call. She racked her brain, trying to think of something to say that would absolve her of this conversation. Borgack chuckled before continuing.

“The tattoo’s did hurt, but they were not bad. I would suggest you start with something small. I do the tattooing in my settlement. It is part of my duty and my job. I would allow you entrance for a session, in exchange for something.”

Venus couldn’t stop herself from grinning, partly in confusion and partly in joy. Getting a tattoo like she always wanted, and by an orc woman? Say less. She turned to look at Fared, her eyes wide hoping he would not tell her no. He rarely did, but in some cases he refused her questions out of concern for her safety as a human in a supernatural haven. Fared shrugged.

“She did ask for something in return, Venus.” He reminded her and she turned back to Borgack who handed Venus a folded piece of paper.

“This is a photo we have of someone who broke into our settlement the other day,” she said. “If you can help us find them and return what they stole, I’d be glad to repay you in the form of a tattoo and a tour of the settlement.”

Venus cocked her head before opening up the photo. Fared snorted, looking over her shoulder. Venus laughed softly, leaning back against the wall.

“I can definitely help you with this,” she assured Borgack. “In fact, I can take you there now.”

. . .

It was never hard to find Lucio. They were always either at the bar drinking mocktails or at the bowling alley arcade gambling their life away. Today they were at the arcade. Borgack had to hunch over slightly to fit in the arcade and follow Venus through the hallway leading to the Wheel of Fortune game. Despite her reasoning for being there, she was excited to see the imp again. It had only been a few days, but she missed their late night rendezvous’s on rooftops where they could just sit and discuss their lives and futures. Lucio stood up at their approach and waved. They seemed tense.

“Venus!” They yelled over the noise of the arcade. “Who’s your friend?” There was a strange gleam in their eyes.

Before Venus could explain the situation, Borgack lurched forward and hovered over them.

“You broke into my settlement and stole one of our artifacts!” she accused them, her once kind voice now harsh. Lucio spread their wings and flew up to make eye contact.

“Yeah?” they said, smirking. “So what if I did? Security there sucks a*s. Not my problem.”

Venus hummed, not overly surprised. Lucio was an imp. It was in their nature to behave, well, impishly. They often spent the night in jail and was always doing some type of community service.

“Return it. Now.” Borgack demanded reaching out to pull Lucio down from the air. They dodged.

“Why?” they laughed. “I took it so it’s mine now. Not that difficult to understand. Maybe you should lock them up better. Or actually guard the settlements. None of this is my fault.”

The two of them fought in circles. Spitting insult after insult, accusation after accusation. After about ten minutes of bickering, Venus found herself getting bored. She tugged at the hem of her dress, wishing she had thought to pair a more flattering pair of heels with it. She could have at least done her hair up before grabbing Borgack and pulling her towards the arcade. Venus sighed. She had been too intent on helping the orc woman with her task to properly dress herself.

After a moment of silence, Venus glanced up to see Borgack and Lucio staring at her expectantly.

“What?” she asked, unsure when she became involved. How long had she been zoned out?

Lucio dropped to their feet and grabbed Venus’s hands and drew them to their chest.

“Venus, tell this brute that I’m innocent. You know I’d never do anything so horrible.” They pleaded, a sparkle in their yellow eyes. Venus pulled her hands back to her side.

“Borgack says if I help her with this I can get a free tattoo and a tour!” she explained excitedly. “You know I’ve been talking about getting a tattoo for a while now. The nearest place is an hour away. Please help me out here, I’ll owe you.”

Lucio contemplated her words before shrugging and pulling a small statue out of their knapsack and tossing it to Borgack. The strange gleam returned to their eyes and Venus noticed their attitude shifting.

“Okay.” Was all they said before returning to the Wheel of Fortune game. Borgack turned to leave the arcade.

“I’ll be right behind you,” Venus said to her. “I want to talk to Lucio quick.”

Nodding, the orc left the building. She turned to Lucio to find them staring back at her.

“So,” they said, drawing out the word. “I feel like it’s been forever.”

Venus agreed, unsure what else to say. She probably should have given them a heads up before storming in, orc woman in tow. The last time the two of them had hung out on Fared’s roof, the conversation had gone off topic and the two left with hurt feelings.

“I’m sorry,” Venus started. “I should have warned you. I wasn’t thinking clearly, I just got excited. I wanted to help. I wanted a free tattoo. I wanted...”

“You wanted a nice strong lady to come dote on you.” Lucio interrupted bluntly. “No totally. I get it.”

Venus wanted to argue, to say they were wrong. They were making assumptions. Truth was, they were spot on and they knew it.

“I fucked up,” she admitted. “I found a girl hot. I acted a little irrationally. I don’t understand why you’re so mad at me. I understand being annoyed, but you seem pissed.”

It was true. She had expected them to maybe be a little annoyed at the lack of warning, but they usually thrived in chaos. She assumed it would be a win for them both. Had she known they would be seething at her, she wouldn’t have acted so rashly. Lucio ran a hand through their short onyx hair.

“Can you put two and two together for me?” they asked, refusing to make eye contact. Venus frowned, completely missing the point. Realizing this, Lucio went on. “Remember the last time we were together? Remember what we talked about?”

The truth dawned on Venus and she internally cursed herself. All at once, realization settled in. Their last rooftop conversation sprung to the front of her mind.

“Do you believe in fate?” Lucio said, glancing at Venus. She shrugged, staring up at the stars. It was a warm night and she had stripped down to just her bra and pink jogging shorts.

“I don’t know.” She responded. “I feel like that’s the only explanation for how I ended up here. Then again, it could just be luck. I’m not sure I know the difference anymore.”

Lucio was silent, thinking it over.

“Why can’t fate and luck go hand in hand?” They continued. “Why does it have to be one or the other.”

Venus tore her eyes from the stars and frowned at them, puzzled. This wasn’t like their typical conversations that revolved around jokes and gossiping. In fact, she couldn’t sense a single joking tone in the imp’s voice.

“I guess.” she said. “I’m not sure I follow though. I’m sorry.”

Lucio groaned and lay back against the roof. Venus remained sitting, but positioned herself towards them.

“I was just thinking,” Lucio murmured. “About when we met. I thought you were the most interesting thing I had ever seen. Like a new toy.”

At this, Venus laughed.

“Thanks,” she giggled. “I know you meant that in a nice way, but that’s a funny way of putting it. I thought you looked pretty interesting yourself.” she reached out and flicked one of the horns protruding from their head. When she went to withdraw her hand, Lucio reached up and grabbed it. Sitting up, they brought her hand to their mouth and smiled. When they spoke again, Venus was at a loss for words, or even breath.

“I think I’m in love with you.”

. . .

Venus shook her head, bringing her attention back to the present. Lucio was still watching her with narrowed eyes and a frown. Somehow Venus had willed that night out of her memory. It was too much.

“Lucio, do you know how much has changed in just a year for me?” she asked, swallowing thickly. “Not only did I run away from home, I accidentally stumbled into a hidden town of completely nonhuman residents. Then I ended up living with the jinn mayor, who is four hundred years old by the way, and befriending an imp. I still haven’t completely wrapped my head around all of this. I still have so many f*****g questions. I can’t...I can’t give you an answer right now.”

Lucio’s expression didn’t change and Venus’s heart dropped.

“I understand all of that,” they said. “I didn’t ask for a f*****g answer. But you can run around with an orc now all happy and flirty. That’s fine though. No worries. I understand.”

“I’m not acting flirty,” she spat back. “Sorry you can’t see beyond your jealousy, but I’m just excited to get a free tattoo.”

“At the expense of your friend. You’re welcome, by the way.”

Venus fought back the urge to scream. So what if she thought Borgack was hot? Nothing was going to happen between them. In the end, she just wanted a tattoo.

“I’m going out to meet up with Borgack,” Venus said quietly, unsure if Lucio could even hear. “I’ll see you later.”

Without waiting for a response, she turned on her heel and exited the arcade to find Borgack sitting on a bench waiting patiently. At her arrival, the orc jumped up and smiled wide.

“Thank you,” she said earnestly. “For helping me retrieve the statue. My gratitude goes out to you, dear Venus.”

Venus nodded curtly, forcing a smile.

“Of course,” she managed. “I’m happy to help. Can I help you with anything else?”

Borgack shook her head.

“I’ve already taken up enough of your time. Can I collect you tomorrow for your reward?”

Venus couldn’t think of any reason why tomorrow wouldn’t work, so she agreed and the two departed after another overly eager handshake.

That night, Venus slipped off the dress and put on a shirt Fared had given her for pajamas. She walked over to hear bed and pulled the comforter up before stopping. After slight hesitation, she dropped the blanket and opened her window. Stepping out, she grabbed hold of the ladder and climbed atop the roof. Once Fared had become keen to her late night outings with Lucio, he had installed a railing around the roof to prevent injury. Venus smiled at the memory. She leaned against the railing and looked up. The moon was almost full, but not quite, and she was looking forward to the night it was full. She yawned, resting her head on her folded arms. Today had been especially long and strenuous and she was happy for it to be ending. She thought back to Borgack and their expedition tomorrow. On one hand, she was excited. Getting to tour an orc settlement was apparently a huge honor. Plus, she would finally be getting her first tattoo. She was looking forward to getting to know Borgack better. She was extremely interesting, plus insanely hot. At that thought, Venus huffs and an image of Lucio entered her mind.

When Lucio had first told her they loved her, she was scared. She definitely felt something towards Lucio. At the very least, she liked looking at them. She had never felt romantic love, she wasn’t even sure if she had even felt platonic love before. How could she tell them that though? When she thought about Lucio kissing someone, she felt a pain in her heart and chest. Was that romantic jealously or platonic jealousy? After all, wasn’t it normal to be jealous of someone else taking your friends attention?

All of a sudden, Venus felt a pang of loneliness engulf her. She didn’t want to be alone tonight. She thought about going to wake up Fared and asking him for advice. She stood up, readying herself to climb down into the house. She turned around and found herself running into a familiar body.

“Hey,” Lucio greeted her, lightly grabbing her shoulders to steady her. “Didn’t mean to startle you.”

Venus looked down at them, both relieved and insecure. They looked pensive, much calmer than earlier. She pursed her lips.

“Lucio, I owe you an apology.”

“I wanted to say I’m sorry.”

The two of them spoke over each other. They locked eyes and laughed awkwardly, stepping back and away from each other.

“I overreacted,” Lucio continued. “I shouldn’t have gotten upset at you with the orc. It’s whatever. You’re allowed to do things with people other than me. Even if they are a big, buff, orcish warrior.”

They winked, hoping to lighten the mood. They were downplaying their own emotions in hopes to placate Venus and mend their friendship.

“I don’t know how to tell my emotions apart,” she forced herself to admit. The imp blinked at her, clearly caught off guard. “My whole life I have never had friends. I have never been in love. I don’t...I don’t know what’s platonic or what’s romantic. My parents said they loved me everyday and I said it back but I don’t know what it means. I’m confused. I didn’t say anything back to you that night because I was scared and confused.”

She sniffed, rubbing her eyes and seeing black flecks of mascara on the back of her hand. She waited for Lucio to laugh at her and call her a naive human who was oblivious and curious. She hoped they would say it soon, because the silence was getting too much for her to bear. When she finally looked into their eyes, she saw nothing but kindness in their eyes.

“I thought you hated me,” They breathed. “When you didn’t respond, I thought I must have ruined everything. Our friendship. That’s why I flew off and didn’t come back the next few nights. I thought you’d want space. I spent the nights wishing I had never said what I did.”

“I couldn’t hate you!” Venus blurted out before she could stop herself. “I don’t know how I feel but I do know that it isn’t hate. I’ve felt hate every single day for 23 years. Trust me, I don’t think I could ever hate you.”

Lucio laughed at that and cupped her face in their hands. She could feel their claw like nails on her cheek and she found herself blushing.

“You’re so full of hate, Venus,” They whispered. “Why can’t you just let yourself be happy for once? You’re safe here. No one is going to judge you for being yourself. You don’t need to be so composed all the time.”

Venus let the tears run down her face. She let Lucio wipe them off her face and smile at her.

“I didn’t have a name until I met you,” they went on. “When you told me your name, I knew you made it up on the spot. You wanted to create a new identity for yourself. I wanted that for myself, too. So I told you my name was Lucio because I wanted you to feel some type of connection with me. I knew I wanted you in my life. At first it was for entertainment. Then I began viewing you as a friend. Eventually, I began to fall in love.”

A breeze wafted through, blowing Venus’s hair into her face. Lucio caught it and tucked the pink strands back behind her ears.

“I don’t need an answer right now.” They told her. “But I want you to know the extent of my feelings. When I saw you with the orc, my heart stopped. I felt torn up. You were smiling and you were laughing. You were happy with someone I immediately saw as my competition. I want to make you look that happy. I want...I want to be in your life. If it means just being your friend, I promise I will fully accept it and be the best friend you could ever hope for.”

The wind picked up again and Venus shivered, instinctively leaning into Lucio for warmth. They dropped their hands from her face down to her waist and enveloped her into a hug. They pressed their mouth into the crook of her neck and held her while she cried. She didn’t know why she was crying. She held them tight to her, not wanting to let go in fear that they’d disappear again. Those few days of not seeing them had made her so indescribably miserable.

Lucio pulled away and cupped her cheeks again, wiping more tears off her face. She looked at them, really looked at them. Their curled horns cutting through thick black hair, buzzed on one side. Their odd red skin, the color of crimson roses. Long, pointed ears with a variety of piercings and a few scars from fights. The face of someone who had lived a strange life. Someone who could have chosen to be with anyone else but instead had chosen to spend their nights laying on a roof with a runaway human talking about the dumbest stuff. They were the only person who knew the entirety of her childhood. She had felt safe enough to tell them about being alone and her struggle with self image. They had listened and become serious when she needed to be consoled.

“Are you okay?” Lucio’s soft voice snapped Venus from her trance and she blinked. “I can leave if you need me to. I just...I wanted you to know I’m here for you. Always.”

She didn’t know what to say so she shakily lifted her hands to their hair and tugged gently. Their eyes widened as she pressed her lips against theirs. They tightened their hold on her and kissed her back gently, allowing her to make all the moves.

Venus had only kissed one other person before. It was some dude in her college bathroom during a party. It had sucked. Too wet, too forceful, too gross. She spent the entire makeout session wishing for it to end. Her mind had wandered to homework assignments and what she wanted to do over the weekend. When the guy finally pulled away, she had to resist the urge to spit in the sink and chug another wine cooler.

Kissing Lucio was nothing like that. It was gentle and soft and she knew she could pull away at any time. They allowed her to set the pace and had a tender hold on her hips. When she finally pulled away, their eyes were shining in the moonlight.

“You have a tongue piercing,” was all she said. “I didn’t know that.”

Lucio grinned and pulled her to their chest, swaying slightly.

“It’s not new,” they chuckled. “You’re just...not observant. Was it okay? I’m sorry if it was weird, I didn’t think about it before...”

Venus stared at their flushed face as they rambled on. She hadn’t seen them like this before. They were almost...shy. It made her feel happy. They were leaning against the railing, going on about when they got their tongue pierced. She wasn’t sure if they realized they were rambling. She looked down at where their hands rested on her hips and she stepped closer to them, curling into their body. They stopped talking mid sentence and looked up at her.

“You kissed me.”

Venus looked away.

“I don’t know how I feel about you,” she said. “I don’t know if I love you. But I feel very strongly towards you and kissing you felt right. I want to go on a date with you if that’s okay.”

When she looked at them again, they were giving her an ecstatic look. She laughed and they leaned forward, catching her lips in another kiss. She kissed back, wanting to feel the thrill again. Whatever she was feeling at the moment, she wanted to bask in it forever. She felt warm and tingly and her heart was beating faster than she thought was healthy. She didn’t think this was how friends felt about each other. When they finally pulled away again, she yawned, causing the two of them to burst into laughter.

“When are you getting the tattoo?” Lucio asked, catching their breath. They sat beside each other pressed close together. Venus rested her head on their shoulder.

“Tomorrow. Borgack is stopping by around noon.”

She watched as Lucio traced the veins on the back of her hand.

“What are you getting?” They asked. “You always talked about tattoos but never about what you wanted.”

They kissed her hand.

“I want something important and personal,” she mused. “I never knew what though for the longest time. But I think I want to get the date I came to The Haven on my back.”

Lucio smiled against her hand.

“That day changed my life,” Venus continued. “I was scared shitless. I still don’t fully understand how I ended up here. Maybe it was fate.”

Lucio crossed their legs and let Venus drop her head into their lap. Her eyes fluttered shut as they ran their fingers through her hair. As she fell asleep, she listened to Lucio tell her a story about an imp that fell in love with a strange human.

Author's Note

I haven't written in like two year so I know it's rough lol