Chapter 12 - Willow
Willow
Turns out mattresses were a big thing in the land of demons, so big that they had multiple stores dedicated to them.
Ironic considering the stone slab the Demon Lord had been sleeping on all this time.
Why would the author flesh out this village before the castle?
It just didn’t make any sense, unless they were the type of author who got really distracted by random details and forget about the important things.
Ha. Who would do that?
I leaned back in a chair in the shop’s lobby, watching as the Demon Lord glowered at the rows of mattresses without trying any of them.
I’d convinced him that this was a necessary step in figuring out who he was, but really, I’d wanted to give him the opportunity to talk to people on his own.
If he really was a villain, we needed to know why, and the best way to do that was to see how people interacted with him.
Unfortunately, the intense gloom emanating off him in waves was too thick to penetrate.
A few customers had gotten close, but they’d changed direction when his shadows had darkened the area.
The woman behind the counter also seemed interested, but she was more focused on keeping the little girl peeking out from behind the back curtain from running out to greet him.
“Leave him be, Rosie,” she whispered. “He’s a customer right now and you know the rule about customers.”
The little girl sighed. “Don’t bother them unless they need help.” She peeked at the Demon Lord again, exasperation clear on her face. “But mom, look at him! If anyone needs help, it’s him.”
I laughed softly, but the girl’s mom must have heard me.
She bowed her head and shooed the little girl back behind the curtains like they were never there.
Those were the kind of people he should be talking to, but instead, he was just standing there like a statue!
The girl was right about one thing: he needed help.
I meandered over by him, glaring at the mattresses like he was. “You know, you could try sitting on one to see if you like it.”
“Sitting on one?” His eyebrows shot up. “Why don’t you just pick one? This was your idea after all.”
Well, he had me there. I flopped onto the closest mattress, sinking into its pillowy surface so far that it was cradling my entire body.
That was weird, and yet, it was kind of comforting.
Like one of those weighted blankets. Except, I’d sank in so far that I couldn’t see the Demon Lord anymore. Or get back out.
I struggled against the coziness to no avail. “Uhhh, any help would be appreciated.”
He snorted. “You’re the one who hopped on a magical mattress without checking its properties first.”
Magical mattresses? Sure, there was a lot of magic in this village, but even the mattresses were full of it? I gazed up at the ceiling, watching as big needles and thread flew overhead, zipping back and forth between seamstresses. Okay, maybe I should have guessed that.
From now on, I’d assume everything in this village had some kind of magic. Even those toasted nuts I’d sampled earlier. My stomach growled, remembering their buttery flavor. We’d need to stop for lunch soon if this mattress shopping took as long as the stationery shop did.
Suddenly, a strong hand grasped mine, yanking me out of the bed hard enough to send me flying through the air. I stumbled against the Demon Lord’s chest, his arm resting against my waist to steady me. His eyes were full of laughter and my face burned.
“Fine, show me what bed you think we should try next then.” I forced myself to step out of his warm and safe grip, moving to read the sign on a nearby mattress. “This one supposedly makes you feel like you’re sleeping on a cloud. That sounds nice, right?”
He leaned over my shoulder to read the tag. “It also literally floats. Can you imagine being half asleep and forgetting you were in the air? That bed sounds like a health hazard.”
“I’d totally do that,” I said with a laugh. “Okay, moving on then. What about this one? It plays soft music for you until you fall asleep.”
He pinned me with an icy stare. “Demon Lords do not need lullabies.”
“Oh forgive me, your Demon-nes, I forgot you were too good for silly things like music.” I dragged him through the aisles, checking out what other mattresses he might like.
“Honestly, the magic isn’t the most important part.
First, we should find out what kind of firmness you like.
Do you like hard beds or soft ones? Maybe you’re in the middle? ”
“I’m not sure...”
His voice was soft, changing his entire vibe from grumpy demon to lost puppy.
I kept forgetting that he was a character from a book, so he’d probably never actually slept in a comfortable bed before.
Well, there was only one way to fix that.
He’d have to lay down on every single mattress until he found one he loved.
I straightened my shoulders. “If you want a good night’s sleep, there’s only one thing you can do: sit on that mattress. Sit on every mattress. Lay down and roll around on them. Figure out what you like and what you don’t like. Your coziness demands it!”
“You want me to lay down?” His eyebrows pinched together. “Maybe you should just do that part for me. It wouldn’t look good for a Demon Lord to be rolling around like a dog.”
I pressed my lips together, picturing him flicking his ears and pawing at the sheets. Ohhh the silly things I could write. Speaking of writing, I could hear the furious scribbling of Inkheart behind me. I glanced over at the book.
You might as well pick a mattress for him. That way you’ll enjoy it when you inevitably end up using it.
“Inkheart!”
The pen wasn’t even trying to tame the quirks it had picked up from its former owner. I was in no way about to share a bed with the Demon Lord. Not a chance. Things would get all sorts of messy if that happened.
You know you want to. So go, try some beds with him, have some fun. He obviously needs help in that department.
That was true. The Demon Lord really didn’t seem to know how to have fun on his own yet. And how could he if he had no idea what he enjoyed doing? I took a deep breath, then flopped onto the next mattress. This one said it magically controlled the temperature, but I wasn’t sure how.
“Aren’t you going to join me?” I stared up at the Demon Lord until he relented. I grinned as he sat on the very edge of the bed, barely even touching its surface. “There you go. How’s it feel?”
“Fine.” He grunted, but I could see him scoot backwards just a tiny bit. “Are they always this soft?”
“No, they can be firmer too.” I sat up, moving on to the next bed. “This one might be more your style.”
This time he sat on it without me asking him to, even leaning his hands back like he was ready to relax.
I smiled, happy to see him finally letting loose just a bit.
Maybe if we kept this vibe going, he’d be willing to actually talk to people too.
So we kept trying beds, ranging from so soft we both got lost in them to so hard they almost felt like that stone slab, but he seemed to prefer the ones in the middle.
Which actually did suit me pretty well, but I wasn’t about to admit that to the chatty pen full of sassy commentary.
Its feather tilted to the side, as if it knew what I was thinking.
“Okay, now what kind of magic do you want?” I asked. “Honestly, I’d lean towards sleep magic to make sure you feel well-rested in the morning.”
He laid back on one of the beds, his long black hair sprawled across the mattress, seemingly deep in thought. I’d never seen him let his guard down like that before. He really was trying to find something he liked, which felt like such a win for today.
Not to mention how good he looks doing it, right?
For once, I couldn’t even chastise the pen.
He did look good on that bed. My heartbeat quickened and I wiped my hands on my pants, forcing myself to look away.
This was for research, not pleasure. Getting distracted by those long lashes of his wasn’t going to do me any good.
I’d gone down that road with other men before and it always ended the same: they left.
After it had happened four times in a row, I realized there were better things to spend my time on than men who were so flighty they couldn’t stick around for more than a few months.
This Demon Lord would do the same thing.
He was literally a character in a book, and depending on how his last book went, we had no idea what would happen to him.
Getting attached to him was a terrible idea.
But, seeing him smile and take care of himself did feel good. Even if we weren’t together, making his life a little better felt like it was worth doing. For the story, of course.
My stomach grumbled again, apparently so loud that the Demon Lord sat up. He got off the bed, tugging his clothes straighter. “I think we’re done here. Let’s get something to eat.”
And just like that, all my hard work was ruined.
“Oh no, you’ve got to order the mattress first.” I nudged him towards the shopkeep I’d seen earlier with beautiful rose-gold horns. “We’d like to buy a mattress, please.”
“Of course.” She smiled wide as she rang up the order, her gaze never leaving the Demon Lord for long.
“I was hoping to thank you in person one day. For saving my Rosie a few years back.” The little girl ran out from the back room, clinging to her mother’s side with far more shyness than I’d expected.
“Rosie, this is the man who united our people and created the barrier between our land and the humans. The Wandering Woods protects us so that you never have to worry about getting taken again.”
Rosie looked up at him from her position behind her mother. “It’s nice to meet you, My Lord.”