The Demon's Angel

Chapter 23

Elizabeth
"Kurt!" Kurt jumped awake, banging his head on the top of the bunk. "Ouch..." He rubbed the sore spot on his head. I blushed. "Sorry! Margali sent me to come tell you that we're here." "Tell her I'll be out in a minute," he said. Suddenly, I was painfully aware of the fact that he wasn't wearing a shirt. My blush deepened, and my wings fluttered slightly. "Get ahold of yourself!" I thought angrily. "You've seen him without a shirt on before! Granted that was when he was half dead, but still..." I took a deep breath and answered cheerfully. "Ok, but you better hurry, or she'll be in here to drag you out herself!" He laughed. "Don't worry. I know she will."

I slipped out and closed the door with a sigh. I was still trying to get my face back to its normal color when Margali walked up. "Is he awake?" she asked. I smiled. "Yep! He's just getting dressed!" She nodded, satisfied, before saying, "You can both join us when he's done," before walking away. Kurt walked out a few seconds later, his shirt all twisted up and his hair ruffled. It was adorable. I sighed, reaching up and gently adjusting his shirt. He smiled as I moved on to his hair, smoothing it down. "Am I presentable yet?" he asked teasingly. I grinned. "Yep!" He laughed.

As we walked along, I commented, "It's crazy that I haven't noticed until now how much taller you've gotten than me." "Are you sure that you haven't gotten shorter?" he joked. "Pretty sure," I laughed. "I may be a mutant, but I know I don't have the ability to shrink." He put an arm around my shoulder. "I think I like you at this height. You make a good armrest." I stuck my tongue out at him. He rolled his eyes, but continued grinning like an idiot.

Our moods dampened just a little as Margali handed me my sweatshirt and Kurt his coat and shoes. Kurt made a face at the shoes, but uncomplainingly put them on. I did the same, because even though I loathed hiding, I knew that it was needed. That became all the more apparent after Florence. "Ok!" Margali clapped her hands as all of the performers gathered around us. Kurt held his coat over his arm, obviously not ready to put it on yet, but he still shifted uncomfortably from foot to foot because of his awkward shoes. I stuck my hands moodily into the pockets of my own hated hoodie. "We'll be unloading at St. John's Port Authority, and from there we'll drive the seven hours it takes to get to Corner Brook, where our first performance is!" Everyone around us groaned. I rolled my eyes at Kurt, and he stifled a laugh. Margali just clapped again. "Come on, everyone! The sooner we get going, the sooner we'll be there!" she announced briskly.

Despite everyone's original groaning about it, we all got to work right after the boat landed. Kurt and I were both disappointed that we couldn't use our powers to help like normal. We were told to hide all signs of us being mutants, so it took significantly longer to unload. By the time we were actually done, everyone, including Margali, was extremely moody. We were all ready to be at Corner Brook.

Add already high tensions and crowded conditions in a space you can't leave equals a huge mess of shouting and fighting. Since it was just me, Kurt, and Margali in our trailer, the peace was fairly well kept, especially after I napped for a bit, but we actually heard the shouting as other people drove past us. Margali shook her head, and Kurt winced. Hopefully, time out of the car to perform would help get rid of everyone's restless attitudes.

We arrived just in time for the show that evening. There was the usual buzz of the crowd, but what was strange was that Kurt looked almost sick. "I don't know if I can do this," he whispered. I gave him a hug. "It'll be ok," I whispered. "I have an idea. Just play along, ok?" He looked confused, but he nodded. I smiled encouragingly. He gave a hesitant smile in return.

The show, of course, started as it normally did. Kurt "kidnapped" Amanda, climbing high with her to the trapeze. I waited where I hung in the silks. My cue passed, and Margali gave me a furious look from below. "Go!" she hissed. I shook my head stubbornly. After a moment, she gave up, shaking her head and sighing. The angels were now closing in on Kurt. He flipped down to the tightrope, and climbed to the ground, Amanda still in his arms. He began to hiss and spit as they closed in, and two angels lifted up a third one to flip over him.... I swung gracefully down from the silks, landing in front of the three angels. I twisted my face into one of fear and despair. "Stop!" I shouted. Shocked, the three angels froze. Werner stared furiously from where he watched behind a pole, ready to swoop in and save Amanda. I lowered my voice. "Let me try." I walked slowly to Kurt, who snarled. I reached up and caressed his cheek. For a moment, his face softened to his own face, the gentle, playful one I loved. He looked so confused, but he recovered quickly, baring his fangs at me. "You'll never have her!" he declared angrily. I shook my head sadly. "You need to let her go," I said softly. He growled but didn't pull his face away. I began to sing softly. "You are corrupted, but I see your heart. I know you, I remember. You are an angel inside. This is not who you are... let your goodness out. Let it out and see. You're a diamond in the rough, don't let yourself be just coal, I know you can be more.... You can make yourself more." Kurt's face slowly softened. The mask he had created for this awful character crumbled, leaving only him. He looked down at Amanda, who despite the terror she kept up, was obviously very confused. Kurt slowly set her down, and the audience cheered. The second he stepped back, Amanda scrambled towards the angels, who helped her up. I was glad that Margali had given us microphones before the show. "Help me," he whispered. I smiled. "I think you've already helped yourself," I answered, stroking his cheek. Then, I closed my eyes and leaned forward. I could feel him doing the same. Right as our lips were about to touch, he teleported. I opened my eyes just enough to see what was going on. Werner stumbled forward out of the smoke. I winced, knowing Kurt had just pushed the first angel he saw backstage towards me, but still wishing it was anyone but him. He seemed to catch on fast enough. He leaned forward slowly. I wouldn't be able to reach my silks..... we'd have to do this..... I pressed my lips to his, fighting the urge to yank my head away and / or vomit for every second until the lights faded. I pulled away the second the lights were out and walked backstage.

I could hear the crowd roaring from behind the curtain. I wiped my mouth disgustedly. I had kissed Werner. My first kiss had been with a total jerk.... Suddenly, I was jerked from my thoughts by Amanda pushing me. Startled, I stumbled and fell. "What was that?!" she yelled. "You ruined the show, and you kissed my boyfriend!" I rolled my eyes, feathers ruffling angrily. "It's not like I wanted to," I retorted. "Are you sure? Because I think you're jealous that I was the one who ended up with him!" I laughed coldly. "Oh yes, I just adore brainless baboons." She turned bright red. "How dare you! Maybe you need to get over this stupid jealousy!" she screamed. "No," I said calmly. "I'm not jealous of you. If anything, I pity you for the mirage you've seemed to create for yourself. He's not some dream man. He's just an idiot with a pretty face." "Hey!" Werner protested from behind Amanda. Amanda flushed. "He's also cruel and inconsiderate. The worst part is, you defend him!" My voice rose an octave. She was losing it. I could see it, but I couldn't stop.

"Even when he's bullying your own brother, calling him ugly, demonic....." By this time, her face was almost as bright as her hair. She rose a hand. I stared calmly back into her eyes. Did she even realize that I'd been through worse than what her weak slap could do to me? "Deep inside, you know I'm not lying," I whispered. Kurt grabbed her wrist gently. "Calm down, Manda. It was just for the act, ok? Everyone is tired from the trip down, so why don't we all go get some rest?" Her gaze faltered as she glanced sideways at Kurt. His eyes were wide, and he seemed almost... afraid. After a second, she reluctantly nodded and stalked away, dragging Werner with her.

Kurt sat down next to me. "Why did you change the script?" he asked. I shrugged, finally relaxing. "I saw the look in your eyes. You looked like you were slowly dying inside, so I decided to change the ending and show that you're not what everyone sees." He sighed. "I was fine, I-" "No you weren't," I interrupted. "I know how you look when you're performing. You love it, but you don't love this show. You never did. Whenever you perform this, your eyes go all sad. I don't want you to hate something you normally love." He shook his head. "You didn't have to say those things to Amanda," he said quietly. "They're true! All of them! She's being shallow!" I exclaimed. "Please stop," he whispered. I looked over at him. "Are you defending her?! How can you do that when she hasn't done that for you since Werner showed up!?" He shrugged. "I just... I don't know. I know she's acting out of sorts now, but she has to eventually realize that she was wrong, right? Confronting her will only lengthen the process." I huffed. "I can't just sit by and watch her act like that. She was scaring you, Kurt. I saw how you were looking at her." He hugged me, and I felt him shaking just a little bit. "I'll be ok, I promise. She just... she startled me, that's all. I thought she was going to... I saw her raise her hand..." He shuddered. "It's hard to see her acting like that. I really appreciate you sticking up for me, Lizzie, but I don't want you to get hurt in the process."

He stood up and smiled, though it didn't quite reach his eyes. "Besides, Amanda is family, she has to come around eventually!" It sounded as though he was trying to convince himself just as much as he tried to convince me. I sighed. "That doesn't make it easier." He rubbed a hand across his face. "I know."