Devil's Paint; A Fairytale

Day (10)

     It was dark and cramped, and Icarus couldn't figure out where he was for the life of him.

      He tried to turn around, only to trip over his own foot and nearly crumple to the ground. Were they back in the world or not? At the moment, he couldn't tell the difference. There was a dripping sound issuing from close-by. Water, perhaps?

     As his eyes adjusted to the suffocating darkness, Icarus could make out pinpricks of light streaming faintly from ahead. He shuffled carefully towards them.

     "Don't screw up, don't screw up... If you trip, we're both goners." Came a voice in his head. When had the demon gone back inside? He hadn't felt a thing. The thin beams of light began to widen out, growing brighter and brighter until Icarus stumbled out into the world, slamming directly into a tree. Rubbing his head, he adjusted his bag on his shoulder. Bad luck seemed to become him.

     With a start, he realized where he was. This was the underground forest, where Letitia lived with her sister. At the thought of his friend, his heart sank. How could he possibly explain this?

     He began to trace a path through the trees. Maybe that would be his first step; Introducing Nuri to Letitia and getting them to make nice. It seemed fitting, in a way. Icarus let out a sigh. But where would he find her? Even he did manage to locate her, she would probably run away from him.

     Notes filtered through the trees, a slow, haunting, brassy tune. That had to be Letitia. All Icarus had to do was follow the music. The forest seemed infinitely larger than it had before he'd left, every tree and rock completely unrecognizable. Still, he tramped on, forging a way towards the beckoning source of the melody. It was as though hours were passing instead of minutes, time stretching to its limit.

      And there she was, kneeling in a clearing, her skirts spread out around her like a massive violet rosette, a golden metal horn pressed to her lips. 

    Her eyes flickered up to land on Icarus, a look of confusion passing over her before she leapt to her feet, dropping the horn in the silvery grass. "You..." She gasped, "Are you really.... Stay away from me!" She choked on every word, the sentence a herculean effort.

     Icarus held up his hands in surrender. "Yes. Everything you've heard is true, but I have to explain something. Please, just stay here," He begged, "Hear me out."

     Cautiously, she took a step forward. "You're not even human anymore, why should I listen?"

     "Because I want you to meet someone."

     It was painless; Nuri flowing out of him like water until he stood beside Icarus.

     Letitia nearly screamed, one hand moving to grasp the beads around her neck; Seventeen in all. "Don't let that thing near me!"

     Nuri glared at Icarus, as if saying "I told you so," but Icarus answered calmly. "He won't touch you. He's my... Friend. He's done some pretty nasty things, but it wasn't his fault." Letitia took a deep breath, seeming to look at the demon in a new light. "So you mean to tell me, he hit me. Not you. Right?" Icarus nodded.

     The girl descended upon the demon boy in a fury, smacking him across the face and sending him sprawling. "Right back at 'cha, pal!" She spat.

     "Ow!" Nuri whined, getting back to his feet. "Why'd you let her do that?" Icarus held back a laugh. "You kind of deserved it."

     "Damn right he did! So, why are you two pals all of the sudden? Don't tell me you like, converted him." Icarus waved her back. "It's a very long, very weird story, but to shorten it; His dad, Satan, hates him and made him do all this and act like he loved it or else he'd kill him." Letitia nodded. "Okay. So why dd you come back here? No one else is going to believe you."

      "Because," Nuri said firmly,"I'm not going to kill him, and if we stayed where we were, my dad would have killed us both on the spot, just for kicks. Icarus is my friend, my only one, and I'll do anything to keep the one friend I've ever had."

     Letitia blinked. "For now, I guess you two can hide in my house. They won't look there. My sister might freak out a little though, and to be honest, I still don't trust you..."

     "Nuri."

      "Right."

     Her sister was ready to put an axe through both of their heads, before they even got in the door. Once again, the story was relayed, and after some extended persuasion, Elisbet let them inside.

     There was no plan. There was only a vague idea of how they would convince everyone that a demon, their mortal enemy, had been hurt and alone for so many years and couldn't truly hurt any of them. The words sounded ridiculous, even in Icarus' head. It was sad, how futile their efforts would be against mass hysteria and public opinion.

     The house was warm that night, and despite everything, it seemed like a home. Where is my family? Icarus wondered. His sister, his brothers, his parents, his grandfather; Were they alright? He missed them all, especially Lucy.

     Nuri laid curled against his side all night long, the heat radiating from his body both comforting and terrifying.