Chapter 12
Twelve
Pythor
Nothing had ever caused me more pain than watching Codie cry and knowing there was nothing I could do to make it better.
I held him close, my wings tight around his small body, and he sighed between hitching sobs as he clung to me, face hidden in the crook of my neck as he cried and cried.
Something caught my eye from the periphery, and I turned my head to look at the painting we kneeled in front of.
It was still wet, telling me Codie must've been working on it.
It was red and black and so full of pain it made me want to look away.
It seemed abstract, but the longer I stared at it, the more I saw.
Like that brown speck near the top, ringed with red. Was that my eye?
As I stared at the painting, Codie slowly calmed down, losing steam as his exhaustion caught up with him. It was two in the morning, and I had no idea how long he'd been working on this. Had he eaten dinner after I left? Or had he been here the whole time?
My eyes were drawn back to the painting as he stayed silent, seemingly unwilling to pull back, not that I wanted him to.
The red and black streaks almost looked like wings as they surrounded the splash of black in the middle. Was that us? Was that how Codie saw himself? All those black marks with streaks of red like someone had torn him open.
Codie had no idea how bright he was. I could see his soul, and it was as pure as they came, struggling and beaten down, but still so damned bright and brave.
As Codie's body went lax in my arms, I slowly magicked us to his bedroom, not wanting to jostle or wake him by doing it physically. Once there, I laid him onto his mattress, took off his slippers, then covered him with a blanket after removing—with magic—his paint-streaked apron.
Hella climbed onto the mattress and curled up beside him, and he turned in his sleep, wrapping an arm around her as he buried his face in her fur.
Smiling, I took my human form again, then snapped a finger to move the armchair closer to the bed.
Before settling in, I turned on his sound system, leaving the voice low as the first song started playing. He'd told me how the noise kept his nightmares at bay, and I wanted him to get some rest.
Codie had asked me not to leave, so I was going to stay right there by his bedside, watching over him as he slept.
When I woke up, Codie was still asleep, so I left Hella to watch over him as I went to the kitchen and debated about trying to cook for two seconds before magicking up some breakfast from a bakery I liked.
I spelled it so it wouldn't get cold, then got some fancy coffee and did the same to it just as I heard Codie start to stir.
Not wanting him to panic over strange noises in his home, I went to his bedroom, lingering in the doorway.
"Good morning," I greeted softly as his eyes opened, and they widened as he stared at me.
"Uh. Good morning?" He said it like a question, and I smiled.
"May I come in?"
He nodded quickly, sitting up as Hella tried to climb into his lap.
"How are you feeling?"
He made a face, then shrugged. "Better, I suppose," he said, voice throaty, from sleep or last night's crying, I wasn't sure.
"I'm glad. I have coffee and breakfast in the kitchen if you want to freshen up."
He blinked owlishly for a long moment before nodding, and I watched as he clambered out of bed, leaving Hella to demand cuddles from me.
I gave her some belly rubs as I waited for Codie, and when he came out of the bathroom looking a bit more awake, Hella and I followed him to the kitchen, where his eyes widened at the food set up on the counter.
"Did you rob a bakery?"
Was it robbing if I'd made some donuts, croissants, and cupcakes disappear from the oven right as they finished baking? Probably. But I also added more than enough compensation in their tip jars, so that should make up for it, right?
"Of course not," I answered rather unconvincingly, and Codie shook his head, a slight curve to his lips.
We feasted on the baked goods and the fancy coffee—which I thought was okay but Codie clearly loved—and I took another day off from the community center because I didn't want to leave unless Codie kicked me out.
Neither of us brought up the mates thing again, and I was perfectly fine with that. I just wanted to spend time with Codie, and if not talking about our bond made things easier for him, then that was what I'd do.
"I want to go outside," Codie declared as I was putting away the leftovers, and I glanced over at him.
"Yeah? What did you have in mind?" I wasn't sure if trying something new after the rough night he'd had was the best idea, but I trusted him to know his limits and what he wanted.
Codie thought about it for a moment, then asked, "How about a walk to the park?"
Guessing he was referring to the small one in the center of the gated community we lived in, I smiled. "That's a good idea. I bet Hella would enjoy playing there."
Codie nodded, and I waited in the living room while he changed, using that time to magic up a leash for Hella.
It was probably the first time someone had put one on her since she became a demonhound, but she didn't seem to mind.
While she was a good dog who listened to me, I couldn't say the same about all the dogs out there, and I'd rather avoid any unnecessary issues.
I wanted to give Codie all my attention.
When he came out, he was wearing jeans that seemed a little loose on him, and a dark blue t-shirt.
As I watched, he picked up his beloved coat and pulled it on.
Seeing me watching, he ran his palm over the thick material and gave me a soft smile as he shrugged.
"It was my dad's. It makes me feel safe. "
Codie
I felt almost at ease walking down the street with Pythor on one side and Hella on the other, her leash gripped tightly in my hand. It was a sunny day, though still early enough that it wasn't too hot.
A clang somewhere behind us made me jump, and I reached for Pythor's hand almost instinctively.
Instead of mentioning it or making a big deal out of it, he simply linked our fingers, holding my hand in a secure grip.
My whole body went warm at the firm touch, and I thought about nothing except how right his hand felt in mine the rest of the way.
I'd gone from not tolerating anyone's touch to practically craving his, and I had to wonder if it was because of the mates thing. I'd felt comfortable around him from the get-go. Was that because some part of my subconscious had recognized him as my mate, even though I had no word for it?
"Wanna sit for a bit?" Pythor asked as we walked into the park, nodding toward a wooden bench.
"Sure."
Hella strained against the leash as I sat down, and seeing as we were the only ones in the park—nine on a weekday wasn't really a popular park-visiting time—I set her loose, grinning as I watched her race all over, a big doggy grin on her face.
"She looks so happy."
Pythor smiled as he watched her, then glanced over at me, the sunlight making his dark skin practically shimmer.
I could see a hint of red in the glow, but I imagined it was only because I knew what he truly looked like.
"She does. She usually sticks around one of us when she's in the human realm, and I suppose we're mostly a boring bunch and don't take her to many dog-friendly places. "
"Tell me about them, the other demons. What are they like? Do they also have human... mates?"
Pythor eyed me curiously, and I knew we needed to have a proper conversation about the mates thing, but for now, I wanted to stick to lighter topics.
He seemed to understand, because he launched into an introduction of his demon friends, showing me pictures of some of them—in their human forms only, since they couldn't risk the photos getting into the wrong hands—as he talked about them.
It was clear he was close to them, and siblings had been an apt way to describe them, because he talked about them with the same mix of fondness and exasperation that most people seemed to use when talking about their siblings.
We sat on the bench for a couple of hours as Pythor patiently answered all my questions, telling me about the rulers of Otherworld—who had summoned Pythor and the other demons so they could assist in capturing some escaped dark souls and a demon who had gone over to the dark side—how the Burning Chasm worked, and how the demons had spent the last few centuries in 'retirement,' only being able to come to the human world in an incorporeal form or as someone's bonded demon.
"I never got summoned, possibly because my name never caught on like some of the others'. Azazel, Ryk, and Mortimer got summoned the most often, but the older three and I are the only ones who never got summoned until now."
"So you never got to experience the human world like this before?" I asked, and he shook his head.
It sucked then, that he was stuck with someone like me who couldn't even show him all the wonders this world had to offer. I supposed he could go on his own, but I had a feeling he wouldn't want to when it would mean leaving me behind.
When Hella got tired of racing around and bringing us bigger and bigger sticks—the last one was a branch I couldn't even lift—she came over to lie down at our feet, panting and so damned happy as she peered at us. I really adored this dog.
"You said Hella belongs to all the demons. Do they mind that I've been hogging her these past few weeks?" I asked, and Pythor chuckled.
"Nah, they haven't even noticed yet. With there being twenty-three of us, sometimes it takes longer than a month before she visits one of them, so they probably think she's just making the rounds as usual."
I shook my head at the delight in his voice, like he enjoyed this mild form of trickery, and bit back a smile as I breathed in, enjoying the chirping birds, the scent of flowers and fresh-cut grass, and his comforting presence beside me.
I'd imagined leaving my house in so many ways, but never had I thought it would feel so peaceful.
Still, after a while I started getting overheated in my coat, and figured it was time to head home.
"Can we go back?"
"Of course," Pythor said instantly, and I clipped Hella's leash back on as she shot to her feet, always so full of energy.
We strolled back to my place, and Pythor paused at the base of the stairs, turning to face me. I glanced over at his place, then at him. Did he want to go back? I suppose he'd spent last evening with me, then stayed the night and spent the morning with me.
That reminded me—had he taken a day off from the center? He was usually gone by this time, wasn't he?
"Would you like to have lunch together?" I blurted out before he could say anything, and he blinked, then smiled widely. I exhaled in relief. Maybe he wanted to stay as much as I wanted him to.
"I'd love to."