Helluva Boss: ''Helluva Human Kid''

Ch. 11 - A Fashion Show

Loona carried Balin into her bedroom after his shower and sat him down on her bed.

"OK Balin, we'll be heading off to work in a bit for real this time." she spoke to him. "But first, we need to freshen you up a bit. Maybe... change one little thing about you."

"Sure thing Loona." replied the kid. "What is it?"

Loona then framed Balin using her fingers like a camera, and started tracing around his body like a game of Pictionary.

"Oooh! I love this game!" he boomed with excitement. "Uhh..."

Seeing this go a different direction, Loona tried so hard not to laugh at this cute guessing display.

"Oh, I got it." Balin cleared his throat as he made his guess. "Sexiness!"

That suddenly got Loona bursting in a fit of laughter.

"No, silly." she ruffled his hair still chuckling. "Why don't you try and guess something else about you?"

"Okay. A boy?" he guessed again, making Loona shake her head every time he'd get it wrong.

"A kid?"

"A human?"

"Ooh! Adorable!" he then froze with his eyes widened, and thought to himself: "Wait, no, that can't be it."

"Nah, you had it right the second time little dude." said Loona. "A human."

"Really" asked Balin curiously. "But what do you mean?"

"Well, you see, kiddo, humans aren't really supposed to be seen in Hell, let alone know Hell exists." explained Loona. "But that was only 'til I brought you here last night. So if you're gonna stay with us for a while, the other demons can't know you're here. No matter how cute you can be, someone will always wanna pick up a fight. So what we're gonna do is blend you in with the crowd, maybe with a demon disguise. Sound cool?"

"Oh. That's... that's cool." Balin was liking the idea, but was still worried.

"Hey, what's the matter?" said Loona with a concerned smile. "I think you'll look cool in that too."

"I know. It's just..." explained Balin. "I know that this is Hell, full of scary demons, and I know this is how you want to take care of me, but sometimes... I just love to be cute and innocent. I don't want that to go away if I make any more friends here."

Loona's ears lowered again seeing this kid's worry like this.

It was so unlike her to have these kinds of feelings, since the only person she could ever count them on was herself, and Blitzø when need be. But with what this kid's been through, it was understandable to her. After all, a promise is a promise.

"Hey, I told you that I love how humble you are." she placed a paw on Balin's shoulder. "But I don't want you feeling as though you have to change and forget who you are, not even for me. Hell is full of scary demons, yes, but even I get scared too. Disguise or no, just know I... I..."

Loona stuttered for a bit trying to find the right words. Or rather, the right way to say the three words. Until she breathed, showed a smile, and finished saying:

"I like you. For exactly who you are."

Balin showed a heart-wrenched look on his face. Those three words were close enough, but the smile was all he needed.

"Thank you Loona. And, I like you too." he said, making Loona blush.

"Come here, kiddo." she opened her arms for a hug, and her friend embraced her as she gently stroked his hair with her claws. "After all, inside every demon, there's a rainbow."