A/N: I've literally been waiting to bust this chapter's quote out for fucking eight chapters when I found it. Usually I'm just like 'eh this works well enough' but this one I just pointed at my screen and was like CHAPTER 38 IS WHERE YOU FUCKING GO.

So let's catch up with my poor little half-breed strawberry

Enjoy~

...Because he had often been bound with shackles and chains, and the chains had been torn apart by him and the shackles broken in pieces, and no one was strong enough to subdue him. -Mark 5:4

He sat straight and alert against the wall behind him, ears perked for any sounds outside of Valefor and Pip quietly dozing beside him. His fingers absentmindedly twiddled with a loose string on the shirt Pip had managed to swipe for him. It was two sizes too big and ridiculously frumpy against his slender frame, but it was better than walking around goddamn half naked again.

The last few days had been...interesting to say the least. Pushing a consistent barrage of flashbacks into the far corner of his mind, letting them play themselves out and trying not to hide from them but refusing to let them overwhelm his weary mind, he'd found a few things had definitely changed. His senses were at their height, able to smell fire from miles off if he could see it and focus on it. His right eye, while still occasionally losing itself, was sharper than before he'd been attacked in the first place, as was its counterpart. A sick part of him couldn't help but be just a little joyous that the days of those damn reading glasses were over.

Everything he touched felt as though he were experiencing it in a drug-induced trip, nerves overly sensitized. The feeling of Valefor's fur under his hand was almost completely new; Feeling each little ridge of keratin, the glossy oils of his guard coat slicking his fingertips. His entire reality felt as surreal. Closing his eyes and focusing, he could hear the faint thump thump thump of Pip's deadened heart beating away in his chest.

Kyle sighed, looking down at his denim-clad legs and blinking slowly. He felt so off, but he felt so alive. The entire experience was exhausting. He wasn't sure just how to handle it all, this was far outside any inner turmoil he'd dealt with in the past. Worse than struggling through suicidal thoughts when he was fifteen, worse than coming to grips with his sexuality, worse than falling in and out of faith over and over again. Given Kenny had made the latter pretty clear as to the existence of God, but that never seemed to stop his doubts. After all, what god would let this happen? He looked at his claws, brimming quietly with anxiety.

He ripped off a head. He still couldn't believe it. Gragor was huge, his head probably weighing as goddamn much as Kyle's entire body, and he tore it off like paper. Given, he wasn't overly upset at who the victim was; He certainly wasn't Gragor's biggest fan. But just the fact that there was a victim. He hadn't told Pip, knowing that the fragile blonde would probably fall to pieces and break his back trying to convince Kyle that he probably did what was right. He didn't want someone to tell him that, he needed to figure out where he stood for himself. He glanced over at the two innocently slumbering and twisted his mouth. When he saw Gragor, all he wanted was to kill him. The fact that he'd managed to work out a warning had stunned him, even in the heat of the moment. Was it just his hatred of the creature? The fact that he'd been one of the ones to revel in keeping him hostage? Was it the taunting?

Kyle just couldn't figure it out. It certainly wasn't just seeing someone that made him snap. Pip and Valefor hadn't left his side and he was completely fine with the two of them, even if he was just a tad annoyed at their constant vigilance. But that just proved enough to Kyle that this wasn't a fluke. Gragor didn't just show up at the wrong place at the wrong time. Something inside of Kyle wanted revenge against him in particular and he damn well got it.

He sighed tiredly, running his claws through his hair and softly beating his head back against his wall. He had a sudden urge to make a damn list as he had so often back home. He needed to straighten out his thoughts, get his emotions pushed through a pen onto a stock yellow legal pad. He needed to plaster sticky notes on his wall in order of complexity, run through each discrepancy dwelling in his mind. First on that list, however, he unfortunately knew he couldn't run away from, much as a part of him wanted to.

"Kyle?" Pip spoke up. Kyle shot his head over and blinked at the concerned blonde as he sat up off of Valefor. "Are you quite all right?"

He shrugged, "I guess. I don't know. I'm just...confused," he admitted.

"About what?" he questioned quietly, scooting over and sitting next to him. Valefor woke at their voices, turning and resting his head on Kyle's leg, wagging his tail as he reached to scratch behind his ear.

"Everything," he said exhaustedly. "It's like I'm going through fucking puberty all over again but my mom can't buy me a book about it this time around," he rolled his eyes. Pip chuckled lightly and the redhead took a deep breath. "So much has happened the last few months, ya know?" he murmured. "I keep hoping I'll wake up and be back in my bed sleeping next to Kenny...But, I guess that's just stupid."

Pip's small smile faded, replaced almost immediately with a scolding frown. "Kyle, it is not stupid," he said curtly, Kyle blinking at him in surprise. "You're upset, you're going to feel like this. There's nothing wrong with that."

Kyle sighed, pushing himself back against the wall and staring out his doorway. "I wish I was like him," he confessed softly.

The blonde cocked his head, "How so?"

He smiled sadly, "Kenny's entire life has been trauma. He's been killed so many times, ya know? He could be completely dismembered one day and then come home the next just asking what's for dinner..." his face slipped into a frown. "Why can't I just do that? Just...fucking deal with it. Forget about it and move right on."

"Because Kenny's deaths are a routine," he reminded him. "And...he wasn't always like that, you know," he winced. Kyle looked at him confusedly and he shrugged. "A lot of times, especially when we were younger, he'd come into Hell looking so very upset," he pouted. "He'd tell a demon how he died, how it interrupted a birthday party or something of the sort," he waved his hand dismissively. "He cried quite often," Pip shrugged awkwardly.

"Kenny cried?" he repeated. "I mean, I've seen him cry plenty, don't get me wrong," he defended. "But about...this?" he gestured around.

Pip nodded. "I imagine it took quite some time for him to accept what was happening to him," he noted softly. "I'm sure that the first time he died, he felt like you do now," he winced.

"Yeah, well, that was...death," he emphasized. "A little more prominently scarring, dontcha think?"

Pip took a deep breath. "Whenever Kenny was dismembered, he'd regrow his limbs and get to start over...You don't get that option," he reminded him softly. Kyle froze at the bluntness, the truth settling on him uneasily. He looked back out towards Hell, thumb stroking methodically over Valefor's ear, focusing on the ridges riding his thumbprint. "But...unlike Kenny, you came out of this with more," he offered.

"Excuse me?" he questioned dryly, shooting him a quirked brow; A warning to tread carefully.

Pip gulped, "Please, don't think that I believe what happened is a good thing," he hurriedly assured him. "But...you said it yourself: You're stronger than before. Maybe...maybe it can help you work past this knowing that," he shrugged with a wince.

Kyle nearly scoffed before pausing, looking back into the light and his eyes widening. His keen mind whirred in thought over Pip's statement as he tongued over his lips. "Maybe I can do something else, too," he murmured, gently pushing Valefor off his lap and hopping to his feet, quickly heading outside. Pip and Valefor scrambled to get up and follow after him, finding him standing in the barren wasteland stretching out before them.

"Kyle? What's the matter?" Pip asked concernedly.

Red and green swept across the landscape, settling on his target in the East. Kyle furrowed his brow, honing in on the energy he could feel in the distance and narrowing his eyes. 'I know you can hear me, you fuck,' he thought spitefully. 'Come the fuck here.'

"Kyle?" Pip asked again, looking in the direction Kyle was staring off towards. He couldn't see anything but broken trees and the orange sky. He cocked his brow. "Kyle what on Earth are you staring at-" he stopped short as movement caught his eye in his peripheral, both of them turning to look at the swirling blackened portal opening on the ground. "Oh dear," he said worriedly, grabbing Kyle's arm and trying to get him to run. The redhead stayed firm, watching as Damien broke through the surface, eyes locked in the man's and a sly grin over his face.

"Well, guess you're taking to the idea of my owning you better than I thought. I'm almost disappointed, Little mouse," he cooed.

Kyle put a hand on Valefor's head to calm his barking. "Sit, stay," he said simply, feeling the dog hesitantly doing so, itching to break forward.

"Were you so lonely without me already, Little one?" he taunted. "I sent Gragor to keep you company, but you apparently weren't up to entertaining then," he smirked.

"Gragor?" Pip repeated confusedly, glancing at Kyle who stayed perfectly still, eyes locked on the noirette.

They both ignored the mortal, staring each other down. Kyle's muscles were rigid, mind trying to throw him into a panicked, miserable frenzy but refusing to allow it. Damien continued, "And to what do I owe the pleasure of you calling? I'm a very busy man, so please, tell me it's worth my time," he smirked, crossing his arms casually.

Kyle kept his face steady, Damien's nonchalant air faltering for but a moment at his expression. The demon blinked, slightly confused at the situation. He'd left Kyle in tears and broken on the floor mere days ago. Why wasn't he reacting to his presence? Calling him or not, Damien had dealt with mortals long enough to know just how many ways they reacted when confronted with their tormenters. Standing tall was not one of them.

"Gragor got it easy," Kyle finally broke the silence, his voice strong and sharp, sliding off his tongue like turpentine.

Damien automatically fell back into his relaxed position. "Did he now?"

"You'll wish I just tore off your head so quickly," he hissed.

He cocked his brow amusedly. Seems his mouse still wanted to play. He couldn't deny the idea was exhilarating, not quite wanting to lose everything about Kyle's defiance all at once. After all, the longer he wore him down, the more likely it was he'd stay that way. "I'm simply terrified," he drawled. "And just what do you plan to do?"

He watched as Kyle's eyes flashed with color, quickly sensing the power approaching from behind him. He whirled around to find a large boulder heading for him with deadly, speeding precision. He smirked, holding out his hand and jerking it to the side, the boulder crashing back onto the Earth. He turned back, "You'll have to do more than-" He paused at Kyle not a foot away from him, rushing towards him with his claws bared. He raised his arm to block, missing and feeling Kyle's claws tearing down his face.

The demon hissed, temporarily blinded but reaching up and grabbing Kyle's throat, throwing him down onto the ground. Kyle fell onto his back, riding the momentum back onto his knees and pushing forward once again. Damien opened his eyes through the blackened blood cascading over his forehead and down his cheek, baring his fangs viciously. He pivoted out of the way of Kyle's assault, snapping his hand onto the back of his neck and slamming him down onto his stomach, placing a knee on his back and holding him steady. "Clever little mouse," he sneered, grabbing Kyle's flailing wrists and pinning them down above his head.

Kyle snarled, turning his head to the side and glancing up at Damien looming overtop of him, shuddering at the far-too recognizable angle. "Get off!" he screamed.

"There it is," he grinned maliciously, pushing down on him harder. Pip and Valefor started to quickly approach, stopped by a sharp glare from Kyle. The redhead looked back at his holder, wriggling around incessantly. "Familiar, isn't it?" Damien leaned down towards his ear, breathing wetly on his cheek. "Am I going to have to re-teach you just how much you're under me?"

"Stop!" he ordered, stuck under the strong hold and cursing incessantly as Damien increased the pressure on his back.

"I'm impressed, Little one," he drawled, shaking a blood droplet from off his nose. "You're learning how to multitask so well. Accepting being a monster so well."

He glared up at him fiercely. "I am not a monster!" he screamed.

"No, I suppose not," he smirked, leaning closer down, lips brushing over his temple. "You're just my bitch," he growled, pushing down violently on Kyle's neck and smashing his face firmly against the ground. He got up off of him all at once and Kyle scrambled up, rubbing his numbed cheek as he backed away from the noirette.

Damien cooly wiped a smear of blood from off his lips and chuckled, rubbing the substance between his forefingers and thumb. "As much as I'd love to stay and chat, I have a particular angel to plan a funeral for," he smirked, watching Kyle's face fall darkly in amusement. "Perhaps next time you call, you'll have actual substance behind the message, hm?" he cocked his brow.

The group watched as he sank back through the ground, Pip hurrying over to Kyle's side and helping him back onto his feet. "Kyle, are you absolutely mad?!" he demanded, slapping his arm listlessly. "He could have killed you!"

Kyle looked at him, mindlessly rubbing his scraped cheek before his lips curled into a small smirk. "Maybe...but I can kill him, too."

Pip blinked at him in surprise. "Were you not just there when he was tossing you about?" he asked bewilderedly.

Kyle raised his brow amusedly, the poison from his expression gone with the loss of Damien's presence. "Were you not there when I scratched that fucker's face?"

He rolled his eyes and crossed his arms stubbornly. "One scratch does not equal death, Kyle. I thought you were smarter than that."

He shook his head. "You weren't there for all the bullshit fights in high school, Pip. Fought way more than I'm proud of."

"Good for you, you're a brute," he rolled his eyes again.

"Shut up and listen," he flicked his arm lightly. "Do you remember Cartman?"

He shuddered, "Unfortunately, yes."

"Well, our proportions changed even more as we got older," he started casually, petting Valefor's head. "He just kept getting bigger and I just kind of stayed like this," he gestured to his own lean form. "Bastard kept getting the upper hand on me because, well, he was fucking huge," he scoffed.

He raised his brow, looking almost impatient, "Okay..."

"But then, one day, I managed to get in my first hit," he smirked, triumphantly remembering the glorious crack of Cartman's nose under his fist. "From then on out, I knew I could win."

Pip pouted, "Kyle, I believe that Cartman is a tad different from the son of Satan, hm? I think that blow to the head might have knocked something loose."

"No," he wagged his finger in the air. "If you can hit them once, you can hit them again. If you can hit them again, that means you can beat them. I managed to get him twice when he was attacking me last time."

"And you only got him once here," he reminded him vehemently, not wanting to see Kyle choking on his own veins yet again from being stubborn.

"I only needed the one hit," he said firmly. "If I could get him when I was weaker, then this shows I can get him even worse now."

Pip huffed and slapped his arm again. "That's no reason to invite him to attack you!"

He shrugged, "Look, I had to know as quickly as I possibly could, Pip. And I knew he was busy doing whatever he was doing out there," he gestured back to Damien's direction. "I knew he wouldn't stick around to hurt me."

The blonde stared at him, brown eyes glazing over worriedly. "Kyle, aren't you scared that he'll..." he trailed off awkwardly.

Kyle looked down at Valefor, still patting his head. "Terrified," he muttered. He straightened back up and looked at his counterpart determinedly. "But the fact of the matter is I'm in this situation, and I can't spend the whole fucking time cowering in the corner waiting for him to come back for me."

"I didn't say that," he insisted. "But you're...you're jumping into the deep end!"

"Good thing I'm a great swimmer," he replied smartly, stepping off with Valefor. Pip blinked at him, hurrying to his side and staring at him with wide eyes. "How well do you know where everything is here?" Kyle asked.

"P-pretty well," he answered. "You're here for so long and the layout becomes fairly easy to remember," he chuckled awkwardly.

Kyle nodded, "Good. I don't have time to be stuck looking for things. We'll start in a few days when he's more distracted with whatever the fuck he's doing," he frowned.

He cocked his head, narrowing his eyes in bewilderment. "Start? What are you going to do?"

The redhead shrugged. "I'm going to do exactly what Damien wants me to do." He looked over at the mortal, Pip catching a sharp, mischievous gleam in his red eyes. "I'm going to be the demon that he made me."

A/N: Nobody puts Kyle in the corner.

Tough baby will fight through every and anything to get back to Kenny /sob

...Given he has more to go through still but shhh.

Thanks for R&Ring!