The King of Salt was there with him now, looking into his eyes in a way Mika didn't want to describe, touching his face in a way that could only be described as loving.
The demon was annoying, he said hurtful things and bothered them all day when he was here. He apologized, sure, but they knew he'd do it again. He was chaotic and it was tiring to put up with him all day.
If Mika had to guess what The King of Salt would be like, it was destructive. Calm yet deadly, The King of Salt would probably be the worst of Yuu's forms they'd have to deal with if he ever deiced to hang around.
So why was it that he was handling Mika gently as if he was his most precious possession, and gazing into his eyes like he was the love of his life?
He thumb caressed his face, and Mika couldn't help but lean into his touch. 'Yuu-chan' is the one and only word in his mind now. 'My Yuu-chan'
The King of Salt leaned in, pressing a soft kiss to Mika's lips, it didn't last for more than a second.
"My Mikaela," He said again, sounding serious. Is there something he wanted to talk about, is that why he was here?
He removed his hands from Mika's face and looked down at the bed they were sitting on. "I want to protect you." He said, looking back up at Mika again.
Mika isn't sure how to respond to this. "I want to protect you, too." Mika said the only thing he could think of. Of course he wanted to protect his Yuu-chan.
"I can't do that if I'm not with you." The Salt King said, and Mika didn't know what he was getting at. Why wouldn't Yuu-chan be with him? Yuu-chan was always with him. Well, not every second, but they were practically always together, inseparable.
Seeing Mika's confused look, The King of Salt explained, "I want to spend more time with you, all of my time if possible."
Again, Mika was confused. He and Yuu-chan always spent time together. They didn't have dinner together that night if that's what The Salt King was referring to but that didn't make much sense.
"Yes, you spend time with Yuuichirou but I don't trust him to protect you."
Mika was less and more confused all at the same time. They had this nice moment before were The King of Salt, the demon, Yuu-chan and him all accepted all of Yuu's forms as the same person. They were all having a bit of trouble getting used to the idea, but all of Yuu's forms shared the same memories now, so it was a bit easier to adjust.
So why was the Salt King now acting as if he was different from Yuu-chan?
The King of Salt sighed. "That's probably not the best way to put it. Mikaela- Mika, this is my strongest form and I can protect you best if I'm like this."
Mika shook his head. This conversation mostly consisted of The Salt King seemingly reading his mind, but now Mika had to say something, "You don't have to be in your strongest form to protect me, Yuu-chan. You're plenty strong in all your forms. And I don't need to be protected twenty-four seven. I want to be able to protect you, too." Though the last part was a bit selfish to say. He wanted Yuu-chan to be able to protect himself, but he also liked the feeling of having Yuu depend on him.
"That's not exactly what I'm saying Mika, I'm still not going about this the right way." The Salt King said, sighing in exasperation.
"You see, I- I actually like being like this. So...what if I wanted to be like this forever? What would you do?"
Mika was taken aback at what Yuu-chan just. He liked being like this? Mika couldn't imagine. He thought that Yuu-chan would want to turn back into a human too, like him. He couldn't imagine wanting to stay like that.
But Mika and Yuu were two different people, so Mika tried to understand what Yuu was saying.
"I know this might seem rude, but is it okay if I hear this from Yuu-chan, too? I mean, you in your human form?"
The King of Salt nodded. "Of course, Mikaela."
And just like that, his Yuu-chan was back there in front of him. "Mika?" Yuu asked, sounding a bit confused.
They did all share the same memories now, Yuuichirou's many forms, but he was still disoriented at first when he changed back into a human.
"Yuu-chan, are you okay?" Mika asked, putting his hand on his shoulder.
Yuu nodded. "Yeah, I'm okay."
Mika moved back, before reluctantly asking, "...Is what you said true?"
"...Yeah."
"..."
"..."
Neither one of them said anything after Yuu's quiet confession.
Why...can I ask why?" Mika asked after awhile.
"Well...I don't know how to explain it. Yeah, I want to be able to protect you, but I can do that like this too, I'm not weak, y'know. It's just...I don't even know. It's...exhilarating being like that. And just...I feel more confident? Not that I'm self-conscious, but...I'm sorry, I'm not making much sense." Yuu said, scratching the back of his neck.
Mika shook his head. "No, Yuu-chan, you make sense." Mika gets it. Sort of. There was an 'exhilarating' feeling that came with being a vampire. Mika couldn't quite understand the confident part since he felt more self-conscious as a vampire, but he did feel stronger and more fearless than he did as a human.
"I...I mean, I can't completely understand, considering all I want is to turn back into a human, but...if that's what you want, Yuu-chan," Mika said, taking Yuu's hands in his. "I'll accept you no matter what."
Yuu smiled one of his bright and wonderful smiles at this. He kissed Mika one the lips, this one lasting longer than The King of Salt's.
"Thank you, Mika, and you know I accept you no matter what, too. It's not like I'll never be human again, sometimes I have to, y'know? And I'll want to again, but...you know what I'm saying, right?" Yuu asked hopefully.
Mika nodded, kissing Yuu on the lips one more time. It felt like some sort of goodbye to Mika.
"Go ahead, Yuu-chan. I want you to be whatever you want to be."
Yuu smiled, nodding, before turning back into The King of Salt.
"Mikaela...thank you." The King of Salt, his Yuu-chan, said to him while putting a hand on his cheek.
Mika smiled and put a hand on Yuu's own that was cupping his face. "No problem, Yuu-chan."
That night was the first night of many with The King of Salt, and Mika would soon grow accustomed to having him there, and enjoying it almost as much as the human Yuu's presence. With time, he'd like it just as much, and the difference between their presences wouldn't be so vast.