When Angels and Demons Fall in Love

Chapter 1

One Week Earlier

Kurt

"Woohoo!!!!!" I shouted, swinging around the tent rafters using the combination of my arms, legs, and long tail. "We're finally here!!!" Amanda giggled as she watched for below. "Slow down, Kurt!" she called. "I know you've been cooped up for the drive, but if you don't watch it, you won't have the energy for the show tonight!" Teleporting to her with a "bamf" noise, I laughed. "I don't think I'll ever run out of energy!" I declared. "Famous last words...." muttered Amanda. Sticking my tongue out at her, I jumped back into the air.

That night, as I watched the scene down below, I carefully adjusted my 'horns' on my small perch. This was where I waited for my cue, whipping my tail back and forth for balance. I had the perfect looks and skill set for my part in the circus. With my blue skin, forked tail, pointy ears, and bright yellow eyes, I really did look like the Devil. In the circus, this made me the star of the show, but in the outside world, not so much. I was feared and distrusted. God was the only one who had never judged me, and never would. Sometimes, even my family would, if only by accident. My skills include teleportation (only to places I could see or was familiar with), endurance, being able to be practically invisible in shadows, and acrobatics. Oh, not to mention that I can climb flat vertical and upside down surfaces. My flexibility makes my movements a bit unnerving at times, and they were impossible for a normal human to do. Either way, it came in handy.

Suddenly, I heard my cue. Amanda loudly said, "Oh Lord, send us a sign! Tell us what we must do!" Swooping down, I cackled, "You cannot escape me, oh woman!" The crowd gasped as I nimbly landed and grabbed Amanda as she screamed, "You lie! Unhand me, demon!" I grinned and said, "Does this face look like that of a liar?" The crowd gasped as I leapt onto the trapeze, using my tail to swing myself and Amanda on top of it. Amanda continued to scream, "Unhand me! Lord, save your servant, I pray! Lead me to the path of righteousness!" I smirked and proclaimed dramatically, "Even the Lord cannot save you from your fate, woman. You will forever be mine!" Right on cue, one of the 'angels' swooped down on the other swing. I leapt up to the tightrope right as the angel made the move to grab Amanda's wrists. Two more appeared on each end of it, moving in to where we were balanced. Amanda continued to call to the Lord. Feigning panic, I nimbly swung and jumped to the ground, where a crowd of angels surrounded us. I hissed and spat at them. Pushing Amanda behind me, I growled, "You'll never take her! She's mine!" The crowd cheered as an angel was lifted up by two others, and he was launched over me with a flip. He scooped up Amanda before yelling, "Begone, demon! Go back to the place from whence ye came!" With a loud screech, I used my powers to teleport back into the shadows with a puff of smoke.

Backstage, I let out a sigh. I wish they hadn't made this act for me. I already hated how I looked. I didn't want to pretend to be the same thing that people screamed when they saw me in public. I loved my old act. It was a comedy act where I was a mischievous imp that tormented a human that I had discovered in the forest. As an acrobat, it was amazing to swing through 'trees' doing tricks to amaze people and make them laugh. However, my partner, Lance, the human in the act and one of my best friends, had sprained his ankle in practice a week before we were due to perform. We had to throw together a quick act to make up for ours, which had happened to be the most popular one in the circus.

I perked my ears as he hobbled up to me from where he had been watching the show and patted my shoulder. "Good job today, Kurt. You did really well, especially considering how fast that act was thrown together." I rolled my eyes, although Lance probably couldn't tell, since I had no pupils. "I don't really like it that much, to be honest," I admitted. Lance looked confused. "Why not? You looked like you were having a pretty good time," he said. I sighed. "It was a little fun, but it also felt really degrading. I don't need everyone to remind me of how I look. Being Nightcrawler usually gives me a break from all of that, even for a moment. People treat me like I'm a human being. Most of the time, they just run. It can hurt, and make me feel like..... maybe I'm not. Maybe Kurt Wagner is just a little demon playing pretend." I sighed again. "I don't look like a person, so what am I?" Lance laughed. I glared at him. "What's so funny? I mean it, Lance." He immediately shut his mouth. "Oh crap, you were being serious!?" I folded my arms across my chest and turned away with a huff. My tail slapped Lance across the face. "Kurt...." I gave an indistinct grunt. "Kurt, I'm sorry." When I continued to ignore him, he sighed. "Ok, I'll leave you alone. I really am sorry." He paused, looking at his sprained ankle. "At least you only have to do this until I get better...." Then, he turned and moved away. When he was gone, I slumped against a pole and slid to the ground. Peeking out into the arena, I watched my adoptive family finish the last few seconds of the act. Even though they weren't always sensitive to how I felt, I loved them all so much. Even Lance. At the end of the day, I was really happy in the circus. "I have been blessed," I murmured to myself, a small smile forming on my lips.

When the show ended, the crowd went absolutely wild. It was surprising, considering people usually came to see mine and Lance's act. I reappeared to soak in their cheers with all of the other performers. Then, I followed everyone else out to wait for the time when the audience could meet us.

This was one of my favorite parts of the show. I was able to interact with those in the outside world without being feared or called names like demon and monster. The kids just loved my show, and they loved my 'costume'. I could pretend that I was normal during this time, that, like everyone else, I would be able to remove my blue skin and tail.

After the last act, I was surrounded by them, asking for demonstrations and if my color and other strange features were real. I always told them the truth, that this was how I looked. I would swing younger ones by my tail (too suspicious if I did more; although I can lift a grown man) and do silly flips and other tricks to make even the shyest of them laugh at my antics. My smile was a bit terrifying with the fangs, but no one seemed to care. For once I felt like I could be accepted if I decided to go out into the world. I knew that this was just a lie, a fantasy that I liked to tell myself. I would never truly be accepted by these people. The only reason they weren't running was that they thought that all of my abnormalities were part of my costume. I could remove the horns and the clothes, but nothing else. The only place that I knew that I would always be accepted and safe was there, in my circus, with my family. Or so I thought.

The week continued as normal. I performed. Margali, my adoptive mother, nagged me endlessly about the need to comb my wild, curly black hair. I made up with Lance (there was no need to lose a friend just because he did something stupid). Amanda, my sister, played cards with me when we both had time. I visited the local church at one point.

However, on that Friday, I began to feel strange. After breakfast, I began to feel sluggish and exhausted, even though I almost never felt even a little tired. It took a lot to exhaust me. Lance kept shooting me concerned looks while I warmed up for the show. "We can find you a replacement," he said for the fifth time. I stubbornly refused. "I'm fine," I insisted. I missed my cue by a few seconds, which I had never done, but besides that, the only sign that I was tired was that I moved a bit slower than usual.

Margali ran up to me after the performance. "Kurt, are you ok?" she asked. "You've never missed a cue before." "I'm perfectly fine," I said. However, as I began to warm up for the evening performance, one of my legs gave. I collapsed. "Kurt! You are not ok!" cried Margali as she rushed forward. "I'm fine, Mutti," I said, dragging myself back to my feet. "I'm just a bit tired is all." Margali continued to look strangely at me. "Either way, you should rest," she said, patting my shoulder. We'll figure out something. I frowned. "But-" "No buts," said Margali fiercely. "Go lay down." I sighed, but walked back to the trailer that Amanda, Margali, and I shared. I sat on my bunk and began to say my prayers, fingering my rosary as I went. I finished and couldn't stay awake any longer. Slipping my rosary into my pocket where I also kept my bible, I fell asleep. I didn't even bother to take off my jacket.

Suddenly, I woke to a hand being clamped over my mouth. I could still here the show going on outside. Quickly, I attempted to fling the person off with my limbs and my tail. More hands attempted to pin me down. I thrashed around, clawing and biting anything that got too close. However, I was soon totally pinned. I was satisfied to see one of my captors cradling his arm where I had bit him. Sadly, the victory was short-lived as the men began to tie my wrists and ankles. They even tied my tail to my waist. I felt the rope cutting into my skin painfully; I wouldn't be able to slip out of these. I began to panic. Teleporting wouldn't help because the people holding on would just go with me. I struggled fiercely, yelling for help, only to be knocked out by something very large and heavy.

Translations
• Mutti = mom