Magic Block

Marco woke up a few hours before Tom's alarm was set to go off, and stared blearily at the red numbers before turning and rolling closer to the other, who he had scooted away from at some point. He knew he was awake now because of how early he had gone to sleep, but he was fine with that. Now he could just look at Tom. The other was precious when he was asleep, face relaxed, the lines of stress gone from around his eyes. He slept silently, but his mouth gaped open slightly as he breathed, fangs visible.

It was so cute, and Marco watched him for a few moments before yawning and closing his eyes again, readjusting the covers over them. He was so comfortable, he never wanted to leave this bed.

Tom closed his mouth and shifted, but he didn't wake up, instead just rolling onto his other side and nestling himself deeper into the covers, head turned just right so his horns weren't in the way.

Marco envied his ability to do that. He leaned against him and gently set a hand on his waist. He was warm, as he had gone shirtless again tonight, and Marco idly felt along his side before just resting his hand on him, reassured by that small bit of contact as he fell asleep again.

This time, he didn't wake up until the alarm went off. The screech startled him like it had the night before, but this time Tom woke up and grabbed onto him before he could bolt, laughing at the look on his face.

"Do I need to turn its volume down?" Tom asked.

Marco shook his head. "No, it's just terrifying. Oh my God. Okay, so… Time for day two as a demon!"

"Day two!" Tom got up, and once Marco was up too, he came over to fix up his hair. "Yesterday was probably a bit crazy but today you know what to expect. And before you know it you'll be into a routine and then we'll be getting married and then we're gonna be the king and lord of the entire Underworld!"

Marco grinned. "Can't wait!"

They dressed and went to take on the day. And as promised, Marco did settle into a routine as the days passed. He learned hand to hand combat from Talamor, history and government from Clericus, and about poisons, curses, and magic in general from Archedon. Often he would get dragged along to do something else too, like when he went to the palace tailor to have his wedding and coronation outfits made. Or when he started joining in the rehearsals and weighing in on the preparations.

There was a day where he went to the military base Tom had told him about and he hung out with the basic trainees, who he ended up sparring with only to just barely manage to fend them off. They were tough, and he praised them for it. As he left, he could hear the instructors return to yelling at them and bossing them around, and he was so glad he wasn't in the military.

As promised, Tom got Marco his high school diploma, and they managed to get away for a day to go to Earth and celebrate with his parents, and Marco was able to move all the belongings he wanted to the Underworld, while donating all his old clothes to a local thrift store. It was a little sad to say goodbye to everyone at school, but they understood, and while they did plenty of teasing about his situation, they were happy for him.

Marco excelled at combat training, especially when his soreness from the initial sessions wore off and he grew stronger. Other inhabitants of the palace would actually come by to watch him, and he was proud of himself for how far he has come.

His schooling went okay. He learned pretty quickly, and Clericus often forgave his trouble with history as long as he knew how to properly manage the kingdom in the present, which he did his best to learn. Half the time he was just given free reign of the library to research whatever he felt he needed more knowledge in, and he would just find something interesting and sit down to read it while the naga slithered between the shelves organizing things and reading from his own favorite books.

And magical training was by far Marco's favorite. Once he was adequate in identifying harmful magic, he began pestering Archedon to teach him to use spells, and finally the mage agreed after three weeks. It wasn't going to be much longer until the coronation, and Marco has become accustomed to his new body and life. He could feel the flow of energy around him at all times, and when his emotions intensified, no matter what they were, objects around him tended to react, shaking or floating. Once he even made a glass of wine explode during an argument with Christine at dinner. Tom had been stricken and Judas had let out a long whoop, and Marco had decided that he needed to learn to control this.

"Magic comes naturally to us," Archedon said as he began the lesson. "But the ability to control it varies among users. Most demons have mastered the art of levitation if they are unable to fly. We can use the power of fire itself to transport us from place to place… Or travel through the shadows. And of course we have pyrokinetic abilities… Tom is very skilled in that regard."

Tom was present at this lesson, wanting to be there for encouragement, and he gave a thumbs up.

"But we'll see how you do," Archedon said. "Everyone has something they're good at. You will likely excel in a different magic from Tom. But let's start with the basics. You've already demonstrated an ability to move objects with your thoughts when you become emotional. You just need to choose to move them."

"Sure, sounds easy." Marco wasn't exactly sure how it worked. All he knew was that when he was angry, or really happy, some part of his mind that wasn't there before seemed to push its way out while the emotion distracted him, and objects in his surroundings would suddenly move. The moment he tried to focus on it, everything would still. But with Archedon's guidance, he learned how to intentionally channel that energy, and he was soon making objects float around the room with hardly any thought.

"You're a natural," Tom praised.

"Most demons can do this," Marco replied.

"You aren't like most demons."

The comment made Marco blush. He kept his back to Tom, watching the items fly in circles, before setting them all down. It was like his surroundings just responded to his will. But he wanted to try something else.

About ten minutes later and he had gotten levitation down. And he loved it, darting about the room, laughing and doing flips.

"Honestly, Marco, you act like you've never levitated before," Tom commented.

Marco chuckled, winking at him. He flew back down, stumbling and falling right into Tom's arms. The taller smiled and held him, playfully swinging him around. They have done a lot of bonding in the past few weeks, especially since they spent more time together as it got closer and closer to the coronation. They held hands a lot. Sometimes they kissed, but only in public, when they were expected to. But Marco still sometimes wished they could do it in private. He just wasn't sure how to go about asking.

Now, as he gazed at the other, he again considered the idea of actually dating him, thinking about how well they got along, how they were going to be together anyway, and the desire to kiss him was so strong. He cursed himself for being so bashful about it, he always got like this around people he had a crush on, even if it was someone he was friends with. He was too nervous and odds were Tom didn't even like him in the same way, he only thought of him as a friend. But maybe he could finally do something to move their relationship along.

Marco was about to make a move when Tom put him down and messed up his hair, and Marco batted his hands away. The moment was gone.

"You are a model student," Archedon said. "You seem to have grasped the basics of magic, but there is a reason they are considered to be the basics. I will teach you how to wield fire, like Tom can."

"Sure, bring it on," Marco replied confidently. But despite how Archedon tried to explain it to him, he simply couldn't summon fire. He couldn't approach a flame and make it obey his command. He was still nearly immune to it, could stick his finger into a lit candle and not feel pain, but he didn't have any control.

"Looks like you aren't good at everything," Archedon commented. "But it is nothing to be ashamed of. You have already made great strides in learning magic. We will find out why you have a block when it comes to pyrokinesis and we will overcome it. In the meantime, continue your work with the basics. Meditate and feel the ebb and flow of magic all around us. Allow it to pass through you and strengthen you. See if you can find your inner fire and bring it out."

Marco nodded, and he was soon dismissed. As he and Tom walked through the palace, Tom explained fire magic to him in his own words, and tried to coach him through using it. He even grasped Marco's hands in his own, gently directing flames into his palms, but every time he let go, they would just go out.

"How odd," Tom said quietly. "Nearly everyone I know can hold fire."

"I'm not exactly normal, though," Marco pointed out. "Maybe I just can't use fire."

"I'm sure you can. It's just like the other magic. You just have to tap into it. The others came a little more easily to you but everyone has things they're good at. Heh, for example, nearly everyone in my family can overpower the minds of animals and compel them to do our bidding. But I didn't figure it out until I was twelve. Hell, I'm still not that good at it, but that's mostly because I prefer to get them to listen to me through training and kindness, not by forcing them. But what I can do is resurrection. You saw it when I brought Mackie Hand back. It's an incredibly difficult piece of magic that only becomes harder the longer they've been dead. I pretty much have to drag their soul kicking and screaming back from wherever it had gone since they died. Souls tend to drift apart after a while too. So it's very hard to do, and not many can. But I can. And my control over fire is pretty advanced too, even for a demon, heh." He set his hand on Marco's back. "So don't worry if you can't make fire appear in thin air with your mind. You'll figure it out. I believe in you."

"Thanks. But with how close the coronation is, I suppose I have other things to worry about anyway, huh?"

Tom chuckled, sliding his arm around him. "Oh yeah. We'll have all the time in the world to teach you magic once we're sworn in. For now, you're already learning so much. I don't know how you're doing it."

"Determination," Marco replied. "And... I don't know, it feels like it's easier to remember things now."

"We have excellent memories. But still, you're meeting all my parents' standards. Well, most of them. They would still like for you to be rich. But they've totally gotten used to you now. Dad loves you, and Mom... well, I think she's just glad that you genuinely seem to like me and aren't just using me. She admitted to me that she was worried that if I did choose a suitor, they would end up stabbing me in the back and taking all my power. She doesn't have that worry with you, though."

Marco snorted. "So she doesn't think I'm dangerous? I could totally be a backstabber."

"Nah, you're way too cute for that." Tom tickled him, making him laugh and shove him away. Tom laughed too. "She told me all about how she can see how much we love each other. She knows you aren't up to anything."

Marco's smile faded a little. "How much we love each other. Heh, yeah."

Tom took his hand. "We've really convinced everyone. No one doubts that we're madly in love. This is going to work out. I'm really glad I chose you."

"I'm glad I said yes." Marco looked at their hands, which clasped together so casually now, without really thinking about it. There was no one else around. It would be so easy to tell him what he wanted. Tom was his best friend, he wouldn't be upset if he told him how he felt. So why was it so hard for him to talk to him? What was he afraid of?

"You look like you're thinking hard. You do that a lot."

Marco hunched his shoulders. "Oh, you know me. Always thinking about something."

"Yeah, but when that something causes you to avoid eye contact and look worried, it makes me wonder. You've done it more and more often lately. Do you want to talk about it?"

"I..." Marco didn't know what to say. Tom knew. He knew that he was behaving oddly around him. "It's just that..." He told himself to just do it. Tell him the truth. He had nothing to lose and everything to gain. It would probably make him feel a lot better, the butterflies in his stomach were practically beating themselves against his insides. "I can't wait to be married. You know. And become your lord." It wasn't a lie, but it wasn't the truth he had wanted to say.

But Tom accepted it, nodding. "I can't wait either. We're going to be a magnificent pair."

"Yeah, we are," Marco agreed. His stomach hadn't settled in the slightest. When they got back to their room, Tom went to put a mark on his calendar while Marco pushed his attraction aside like he had unfortunately gotten used to doing recently.

"Nine days," Tom said proudly. "Nine days, and then it's time."

"I can't believe it's almost here," Marco replied.

"Me neither. Oh, my whole life has been building up to this moment! It's kinda exciting but also pretty scary and I'm sure I'll feel a lot worse on the actual day but right now I'm mostly excited. The festivities are going to be so fun and all the decorations look perfect, I can't wait for everything, even the fledging. Oh, to get those strong wings in front of an adoring audience... It's gonna be great! What are you looking forward to?"

"The wedding," Marco said honestly.

Tom gave him a curious look, and he didn't try to lie. "After all this time around each other, getting married would feel pretty natural."

Tom laughed. "True. I'm really looking forward to that too." He looked like he wanted to say something else, but chose not to. "So, bed?"

They had eaten dinner early and spent the evening at Archedon's today. So Marco was okay with going to sleep. He agreed and crawled in with Tom, the two naturally falling into the most comfortable cuddling position. Marco stroked Tom's side and came to a decision. If he hasn't confessed by the wedding, he would do so in his vows. He could hardly stand to hide the truth anymore. He has truly fallen in love with Tom, and he was more than ready to tell him so.