Of Angels and Demons

Chapter 14

Eddie awoke to the feeling of grass in his face.
He lifted his head slightly, spitting out some of the grass that had managed to get in his mouth.
Soon, memories came flooding back as to how he got here.
"Richie!" He forced himself onto his feet, instantly becoming light-headed.
That's right. He had come to help Richie with the demons, but as he looked around, they were nowhere to be found.
"Richie?" Eddie called out.
He took off in a sprint towards a random direction, letting his instincts lead the way.
As he came to the top of a hill, his heart froze in his chest.
Richie was laying on the ground, his wings spread-eagle underneath him.
He wasn't moving.
'No. Not again.' Eddie said inwardly.
He took off down the hill, until he reached the angels' side, falling to his knees before him.
"No. Richie!" He cried out.
He was bloodied all over, and sure stab wounds decorated his chest.
"No. Please." Tears were falling as he desperately took off his coat, pressing it against his chest, even though his common sense knew it was pointless.
"You were too late." A voice sounded behind him.
Eddie didn't have the chance to react, as he felt a sharp pain of a dagger dig into his back.

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Eddie awoke, sitting up with a gasp.
It was dark.
He looked around frantically. Where was he now?
"Hell." A deep voice sounded close to him.
Eddie focused on the shadow a couple feet away from him.
"Welcome home Eds. We've missed you." The shadow turned to face him.
Before he could reply, another demon from behind grabbed him by the hair before gliding a knife across his throat.
He couldn't breathe.

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Eddie shot up into a sitting position, letting out another sharp inhale.
"Eddie? Eddie!" A familiar voice called to him, and he soon felt arms around him.
He struggled.
"Eddie. Eddie, it's okay, it's just me, you're ok." Richie chanted.
"No! It's not you! This isn't real! It isn't you! Why can't I wake up?!" Eddie continued to struggle.
The being released him but didn't move away.
"You're awake. You're okay. Look at me, look at me." The voice continued.
After a few seconds of hesitating, he finally looked up at the owner of the voice.
"Good. Good. See? It's me." Richie spoke again.
Eddie still looked at him warily. "How do I know this is real?"
"Well... you're not dead." Richie shrugged.
Eddie narrowed his eyes, "That's not very convincing. How do you know?"
Richie rolled his eyes, "Because I saved you."
"Why?" Eddie asked.
"Well. Why did you come back?" Richie tested.
"Why did you save me?" Eddie retorted.
"How did you find me?"
"How did you save me?"
"I asked you first."
"I asked you second."
A long moment of silence between them.
"Alright. Test questions. Where was the first time we met?" Eddie asked
"In an alley."
"When was the first time I saw your wings?"
"In the alley."
"What is your first fear?"
"Clowns."
"Favorite alcoholic beverage?"
"Mine or yours?"
"Yours."
"Fruit cocktail."
"Favorite food?"
"Waffles."
"What is my favorite alcoholic beverage?"
"Devil Springs."
"True or false: You like flying."
"False."
Before Eddie could even think about what he was doing, he lunged forward, wrapping his arms around around him.
The angel tensed for a second, but quickly relaxed, wrapping his arms around him.
Eddie buried his face into Richie's shoulder, sobbing shamelessly.
They remained in this position for a long time, Richie consoling him with gentle chants of comfort.
Somehow, he successfully managed to cry himself to sleep.

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When Eddie had finally shown signs of life, it was it was in a form of spasms and whimpers.
Richie hadn't left his side after he had rented a hotel room.
He leaned over, caressing his cheek, trying again and again to coax him from sleep.
"Eddie. Eddie, it's okay, you're okay."
It seemed to work, as he went limp again, his breathing calming.
About an hour passed, and Eddie had another episode.
He was wheezing, as if struggling to breathe, his hands even went to his throat.
Richie took action again, trying to soothe him, and tried to pry his hands away from his neck, in hopes he wouldn't choke himself.
"Eddie. Breathe. Remember, inhale..." Richie mimicked the action, "Eddie, you need to listen to me, listen to my voice, you can do this. Inhale..."
After a few seconds, Eddie inhaled, but still wasn't breathing as well as Richie.
"Good. Now, exhale." Richie said.
Inhale.
Exhale.
Inhale.
Exhale.
This went on for a good 20 minutes before Eddie started to relax again.
Richie let out a breath of relief.
The demon was alive, but something was hurting him from the inside, and he could do nothing about it.
He was brought out of his thoughts by the feel of Eddie's arm moving.
It was edging towards his, and his hand began feeling around the new skin.
Richie moved his arm until his hand intertwined with Eddie's.
It seemed to be the answer he wanted, for Eddie's grip tightened just as much.
Richie gave a sad, but relieved smile.
A whole day passed, and Richie had yet to move.
But Eddie had.
He shot up in a sitting position, letting out a sharp inhale.
"Eddie? Eddie!" He moved forward, wrapping his arms around him.
Eddie didn't return the embrace, he fought it.
"It's not you! This isn't real! It isn't you! Why can't I wake up?!"
Richie felt his heart drop.
What happened to him?
He finally released him, "You're awake, you're okay. Look at me, look at me."
A few moments of silence.
"Good. Good. See? It's me." Richie said, smiling.
"How do know this is real?" Eddie asked.
Richie wasn't sure how to answer that.
"Well... you're not dead." Richie blurted out.
Great job idiot.
Eddie gave him a look of disbelief.
"Okay. Test questions. Where was the first time we met?"
Richie answered each question without a beat.
"True or False: You like flying."
"False."
Suddenly, Eddie closed the distance between them, throwing his arms around him.
It took him by surprise, but instantly relaxed, returning the gesture, offering words of comfort.
Eddie cried into his shoulder. Deep, broken sobs that made Richie's heart tighten.
He was grateful for this miracle of bringing Eddie back, but he wasn't expecting to see him in such pain.
As time passed, his cries ceased, his breathing calmed, indicating he was asleep again.
Richie kept him close for a few more minutes, before carefully laying him back down onto the bed.
He didn't wake up.
Richie took a deep breath, pulling one of the sheets, laying it over the demons' body.
He then caressed his cheek tenderly.
He was warm. He had been for a while.
Finally, with another sigh, Richie walked into the bathroom, getting a rag, lightly wetting it.
He returned seconds later, gently laying the rag across his forehead.
He still wasn't accustomed to tending wounds, but over time, he had done some research.
After a few more minutes of observing the demon, he reached over to turn off the lamp.
He then went into the other room, all but collapsing onto the couch.
Just a little rest.
Just for a little while.