Children of War

TWO- Daemons

Later the next day, I was sitting on my bed while tapping my knee with my fingers; I was bored out of my mind.  Surprisingly, I'd finished my last piece of summer homework, so I was now watching the rise and fall of my daemon's chest as he slept. Malvo (or Mal, as I liked to call him) was currently in the form of a cat and resting upon my pillow. His fur bristled every so often and then he would turn over onto his other side.

I've always found daemons extremely fascinating. When did they come about? And how did they attach themselves to humans to become a part of us? I've asked these questions to my dad a few times, but he's never known the answer, which makes my wonder whether anybody actually knows at all. They teach us stuff at school, but the government don't seem to think that our Daemons and their history are worth bothering about, which is quite pathetic.

Daemons, up until their human counterpart's eighteenth birthday, can change their shape into any animal of choice, even mythical, but they do not stay as permanent mythical creatures after the eighteenth birthday. Unfortunately

Octavia's and my daemon can change into whatever they like whenever they like. Octavia's daemon, Steren, prefers the form of a fennec fox, which I presume he will take the form of when my sister reaches eighteen. Balin, Evelyn's daemon, is permanently a barn owl; this means she's wise, but I wouldn't agree with that. Matthew's daemon, Ottilie, is a springer spaniel and the two cannot be separated, not even for a second.

I've always admired my dad's and both of my uncle's daemons: Bismarck is a tawny eagle and belongs to my dad; she thinks it's funny to start squawking at five in the morning to wake me up. I hate her for it. Uncle Bear has an osprey called Yula, who likes to stare at Mal with her bright, piercing yellow eyes to make him feel uncomfortable, but she doesn't really do it anymore since Mal swiped her across her wing as a warning. Serves her right. Finally, Uncle Gryffin has a border collie named Taura, who is the most well-behaved of the three. She enjoys running around outside with my daemon and I like to watch them with a smile.

As I was in deep thought, a quiet knock came on my bedroom door and moments later my little sister came in with Steren perching on her shoulder in the form of a robin.

"Dad says that tea's ready," said Octavia, a smile making its way onto her face. "And it's a roast too."

"Great!" I exclaimed, feeling hunger pangs in my stomach. "I'll be down in a minute."

With a nod, Octavia closed the door and I lept off my bed, waking Malvo with a start.

"W-what's up?" He stammered with a yawn.

"Tea's ready," I replied. "So, you'd better hurry up before it gets cold."

"Stop exaggerating," Mal stretched his legs and got up, then switching to the shape of a raven and landing on my shoulder.

We then hurried down the stairs, through the hallway and into the dining room, the biggest room in the house. The table, which currently has plates of food and glasses of juice laid upon it, could seat up to ten people. Yeah, my family is quite large. People say that having a big family has its benefits; all I see is chaos.

My grandfather and grandmother, Alan and Jocelyn, usually sat at the top and bottom of the table to show their superiority; the leaders of the family. Normally, I'd sit in-between Matthew and Octavia, then Evelyn next to her. On the other side of the table, opposite me, would be my dad, then Bear and his wife Maddilyn with Gryffin next to Dad. We were the main people in the family, so we'd have priority at the table to discuss work and family life with the family themselves.

"About time, Teddy," Grandad joked as I entered the dining room. "I thought you had got lost up there."

"Sorry. I had to persuade Mal to get up; he was sleeping."