Archive of Our Own ^beta

A pale pink hand to the face.

That's what had disturbed Valentino's already troubled sleep.

As if Angel's little whimpers weren't enough, he just had to squirm in his sleep. The blankets came up, they went down... And the arms! Valentino had never had any interest in parenting, but he now understood why babies had swaddles. It was a hazard! A safety hazard!

With a soft shake of the shoulders, which was far more lenient than Valentino should have been, Angel stirred.

Valentino frowned. "Baby, you've been thrashing around all night. I don't like seeing you like this."

"Sorry..." Angel whispered, trying to rub the sleep from his eyes. Maybe it would help him have this conversation.

"It's the nightmares, isn't it?"

Angel nodded, finding his place in Valentino's arms. "Every time I close my eyes, I'm not in control. And it feels like Vox is gonna worm his way back in."

"Vox is dead, you know this." Valentino scoffed.

"You can convince the rest of Hell, but I live in this tower with you. I know where you keep him."

The spider was far too perceptive for his own good, but who could blame him? Especially after the whole Vox debacle, anyone would be on high alert. It was what made him such an effective spy.

Valentino couldn't truly blame him for that, but it was much harder to reassure someone that everything was alright when they couldn't be lied to.

"...Forget about that." Valentino sighed. "You haven't been getting good sleep for the past few nights, and exhaustion doesn't look good on you."

With no other solution, Angel turned back over and pulled the blanket over his shoulders. But Valentino couldn't just watch his spider looking so pitiful, especially when he wasn't the one to cause it!

The main appeal of Angel was how truly pathetic he was. It played to this aching, yearning piece of Valentino's heart that wanted to scoop him up and nuzzle his cheeks until the frown went away. Velvette always called them 'maternal instincts', but whatever they were, they were triggered heavily by Angel.

That frown just would not do!

Blankets shifted under Angel as he was flipped onto his back. He blinked, a soft startled sound escaping his lips.

"What are you...?" He asked, poking a hand out only to have it pressed to his chest.

"Nope. Arms back down, trust me."

Angel whined, the blankets fully tucking (or trapping) him into something of a burrito. "Val!!"

Valentino smiled. Embarrassment was so much nicer on Angel's face than fear. "The pressure's gonna keep you comfy. Plus, it's insulated."

"But I wanted cuddles..."

"Who said you couldn't have cuddles?"

The bundle of fluff that was Angel was taken into Valentino's arms, warmed by a second layer that was the wings. Angel's face pressed into Valentino's fluff, eyes closing for the night.

~

The pressures of being the face of the Vees weighed down upon Valentino, and heavily at that. Valentino hardly had the mass to support it. Now, Angel knew that Valentino just never had much of an appetite, and it wasn't on him to comment on that. But when it came to the point where he was neglecting meals altogether, Angel was concerned.

Distressed squeaks fell through the blankets, although muffled. When Valentino kicked off the blankets altogether, they became even harder to ignore. And Angel generally tried to respect Valentino's privacy, but there was just a point where he had to intervene!

He poked Valentino's shoulder. Repeatedly. Until the moth finally stirred, looking up all groggy.

"Hey." Angel huffed.

"What...?" Valentino groaned.

With a tug of the wings and a small amount of spit, Angel wrapped Valentino's wings snugly around his body. The velvet rubbed against Valentino as he realized that the spit wasn't spit at all, but a web. A small fastener, to keep everything in place.

He looked up at Angel, stunned to see such a mischievous grin meeting his gaze.

"You just got cocooned, bitch." Angel said before settling back down next to his darling.

Valentino fell asleep beaming that night.