Chapter 14 #3
The demoness's eyes swirled between green and blue as she regarded Nathan thoughtfully. Then more of those unintelligible words rolled from her tongue, and the hellhound's head tilted as he listened, intelligence in his coal-black eyes.
More otherworldly sounds filled the room as Kayja and the puppy engaged in what seemed like an actual conversation. Whatever the demoness was saying, was met with soft whuffs and rumbling sounds from the hellhound.
Harper squeezed Beth's arm, whispering excitedly. "Look! They're fading!"
She was right. As Kayja continued speaking in that ancient language, the red embers flickering through the hellhound's coat grew fewer and farther between. His tail still wagged, but the motion no longer sent flickers of sparks through the air.
Finally, the last tiny red spark faded from his black fur. The hellhound pressed closer to Kayja's side, his enormous pink tongue darting out to give her cheek a gentle lick. When he turned to gaze at Nathan and Harper, his eyes held complete trust.
"He understands," Kayja said, her voice firm with approval. "And he accepts your protection until I can locate his mother."
Beth felt a sudden tingle of magic dance across her skin, making the fine hairs on her arms stand up.
A soft pop echoed through the living room as a young man materialized beside Kayja.
He appeared to be in his early twenties, with spiky black hair and milk-white skin that seemed to glow in the soft lamplight.
"Remi!" Kayja's delighted squeal held none of her earlier menace as she threw her arms around the newcomer. Her black-veined wings fluttered with excitement.
"Hey there, trouble." Tyr grinned and stepped forward, exchanging a high-five with the young man.
"Remi!" Harper bounced on her toes, her bright eyes sparkling. "Perfect timing! Wait until you see who showed up tonight!"
"Dude! I heard there was a hellhound!" Remi's lean features lit up with pure joy. He crouched down beside the enormous puppy, completely unfazed by its supernatural nature. "Oh man, look at you! Freakin' fantabulous!"
The hellhound's tail immediately started wagging, sending tiny wisps of crimson smoke through the air - much less dramatic than the earlier sparks. His enormous pink tongue darted out, attempting to give Remi's face a thorough washing.
"Whoa there, big guy!" Remi laughed, somehow managing to dodge the enthusiastic tongue while still scratching behind those massive ears. "Easy with the kisses!"
Beth stared at Remi with fascination. Though they'd only met briefly at the security meeting at the West Side Inn, his mannerisms echoed Jacinth's so strongly she would have pegged him as a Djinn anyway.
The same otherworldly grace flowed through his movements, and his eyes held that distinctive spark of ancient mischief she'd come to associate with Djinn.
His tousled dark hair fell in loose waves as he moved, his deep brown eyes alight with enthusiasm as he crouched beside the hellhound pup.
The contrast between his obvious magical nature - he had literally appeared out of thin air moments ago - and his genuine excitement as he interacted with the enormous puppy made Beth's lips curve into a smile.
"Where did you come from?" Remi's voice took on that special tone people used when talking to adorable animals. "Who's a good boy? Are you a good boy?"
The hellhound's tail thumped harder against the floor as he attempted to climb into Remi's lap, apparently forgetting he was nearly twice the size of the young Djinn.
"This is so cool." Remi's grin was infectious as he stood up, moving toward the sofa and draping himself across the cushions in a lazy sprawl.
Abandoned by Remi, the hellhound bounded across Nathan and Harper's living room, his heavy tail knocking over a potted plant.
"No! No!" Harper lunged to catch the falling plant, barely managing to save it before dirt spilled everywhere.
Nathan snickered. "At this rate, he's going to think his name is 'No! No!' since that's all we seem to say to him."
The hellhound's ears perked up at the repeated phrase, his tail wagging harder as he bounded over to Nathan.
"Oh my god." Harper's eyes went wide as she set the plant safely on a higher shelf. "Did you see that? He actually responded to it!"
Beth couldn't help giggling as the puppy sat at Nathan's feet, gazing up at him adoringly. "I think he likes it."
"Nono." Kayja tested the name, the smoky tones of her voice carrying clear amusement. She addressed the hellhound. The puppy's tail thumped harder against the floor as he turned to look at her.
"It's perfect!" Tyr said, snickering. "I mean, look at him - he's basically a walking disaster area. Everything he does makes you want to yell 'No! No!'"
As if to prove Tyr's point, the newly-named Nono attempted to climb into Nathan's lap, nearly knocking him over in the process.
"Nono!" Harper laughed, the name already feeling natural. "Down boy!"
The hellhound immediately flopped onto his belly, though his tail continued wagging enthusiastically. His head tilted as he looked between them all, clearly pleased with the attention.
"Well," Tyr chuckled, "I guess that settles it. Nono it is."
Remi's expression suddenly shifted, his dark eyes lighting up with remembrance. He patted his pockets, finally pulling out a sleek black debit card.
"Oh! Almost forgot." He held the card out to Nathan. "Jacinth asked me to give you this. It's preloaded with enough to cover meat from the butcher for a couple weeks."
Nathan accepted the card, eyes widening as he stared at it. "That's... really generous."
Harper peered over his shoulder at the card. "We can't possibly-"
"Of course you can." Kayja cut through Harper's protest. The demoness's eyes swirled between green and blue as she stroked Nono's thick black fur. "I'm quite certain I can locate his mother within that time frame."
Harper narrowed her eyes playfully as she crossed her arms. "I dunno, I feel like I should be kind of offended that they think Nathan and I can't afford to feed the pup, even if it is a roast-eating hellhound."
"Oh please." Kayja's honeyed laughter filled the room as her black-veined wings rustled.
"This has nothing to do with your financial situation.
" The demoness's eyes swirled between green and blue with amusement.
"My brother simply believes in taking responsibility when supernatural creatures end up in the human realm. "
"Besides," Remi added, his dark eyes dancing with mischief, "you're basically providing a supernatural foster home here. Between Jill, Sage, and now Nono?" He gestured at the hellhound, who perked up at his new name. "You're running a magical menagerie."
Beth couldn't help giggling as Nono's tail thumped harder against the floor. The hellhound gazed up at them all adoringly, tongue hanging out as he panted happily, completely oblivious to the discussion about his dietary needs.
"Think of it as hazard pay," Tyr suggested, his blue eyes twinkling. "For all the furniture he's probably going to destroy."
As if on cue, Nono's wagging tail knocked over a side table, sending a lamp crashing to the floor.
"No! No!" Nathan and Harper shouted in unison, making everyone burst out laughing.
The hellhound's tail wagged harder at hearing his new name, creating more wisps of red smoke as he bounded over to shower them with enthusiastic kisses.
"Besides," Remi added, scratching behind Nono's floppy ears, "you're doing us all a huge favor by keeping him safe. The least we can do is cover his food costs."
Beth couldn't help smiling as she watched Nathan and Harper exchange a long look. Finally, Harper's shoulders relaxed and she nodded.
"Thank you," Nathan said, carefully tucking the card into his wallet. "We really appreciate it."