Chapter 18

Matthew pulled his phone out of his pocket, carrying it as a method of keeping time. 'NO SIGNAL.' Yeah, I get it. He did not expect demons to have Wi-Fi.

It took his mind off of licking bark, of all things to consider, but only for a moment. His grip tightened on the soft material, promising to feel as lovely on his tongue as it did on his palms. Matthew gulped, laughing nervously at his potential stupidity. There not much to do when suspended in a tree. He leaned forward, brushing his cheek against the velvet, and the smell was sharp yet earthly.

Ivan said the sap would burn, but why would he tell him not to eat the moss from the tree instead of simply not mentioning it?! Matthew internally schemed, I bet this is one of his demon tricks to get a point over me. Besides, the fuzzy material smelled like something that one would eat, and not something gross and not for eating. He scratched at the green velvet in dire curiosity.

Matthew jumped against the trunk when heavy thudding growing louder and closer to his spot. The black shrubbery around one side of the field rattled, angry at the disturbance on the floor that crunched and broke its way through. He gripped the branch in front of him, weaving side-to-side to get a good look at what was causing the ruckus.

A log of muscle busted into the clearing, galloping on four sticks for legs, and the tusks sticking out of its bottom lip bobbed up and down from its panicked groans. The animal ran nearly half way through the field when something else snarled just as loudly. A large figure of shadows shot from the trees, and sailed over the creature to land in front of it.

The hog squealed, scrambling to stop and flee from its pursuer. Matthew flinched, tempted to cover his ears from the only sounds within the relative area, but did not peel his gaze from the commotion. The demon let out a short, gleeful laugh before launching after it. Neither went very far as soon as the wispy cloud engulfed its body, and the both of them slammed to the ground. The animal screamed again, and Matthew opened his mouth to protest, but the noises were interrupted as Ivan flipped the hog upright to toss it to the side, making it bounce and skitter across the ashy dirt.

The creature trembled, momentarily dazed, and tried rising to its hooves. Yet, the demon allowed it no time to recover as he descended upon the animal once more. More squeals of fright cut off to loud snaps and bones cracking. Matthew gnashed his teeth together, excited and disgusted at the same time. Thankfully, Ivan had his back to him as that weird demon smoke dissipated, so all he saw was the hog's legs twitch and eventually stop.

"Next time, I should pack my own lunch."

Ivan sang from across the clearing, "Matthew, I have caught us food!"

Matthew tried to look around Ivan to see the gore, not that he needed something to decide whether he had an appetite or not. He was getting hungry, but not that hungry. "He doesn't really think I'm going to just stick my hands in there and eat what I pull out, right?"

Ivan did just that, and after he was done smacking on whatever bloody piece he shoveled in his mouth, he twisted around, dangling another slab of grossness, "You better get some before all the good parts are gone!"

Suddenly, chocolate and potatoes did not sound bad at all. Matthew called out, "You're disgusting!"

Must have not heard. Distant flapping made him look up, and he recognized Irunya drawing closer to their area. She made a strange call, and Ivan relayed the high pitched noise back to her. She landed with a loud thump, and approached the mess.

"Where is Matthew? Did he catch something for himself?"

"No," Ivan said through his chewing, "I told him to stay in a tree while I hunted, but now he will not come down, even when I offer food, which is very strange."

Irunya scanned the forest for Matthew, and found him looking right back. He raised a hand and waved. She called out, "Come eat, Matthew! There is plenty if my brother shares."

"Eh, no, I think I'll pass."

She tipped her head, not catching what he muttered from his hideout. "Don't worry, he will share. Right, Vanya?"

Ivan grumbled something inaudible with his mouth crammed with raw meat and blood. While Irunya scolded him to chew before he would choke, Matthew figured that he could ask to have the meat cooked, and pushed away from the tree branches. As he glanced around for a nice way down to the ground, it dawned on him that it was easier to hoist himself into the tree than it would be getting down. He had no choice but to position himself over a gap between branches, and drop.

Twigs brushed against his shirt, persuading Matthew not to go, and he landed crookedly on a thick, dark root blending into the dirt. He sucked in a loud gasp as sharp pain seized his ankle, and he reflexively grabbed at it. When he shifted his weight from one foot to the other, his leg trembled and bucked from beneath his body. He yelped from the pins and needles, and braced against the velvety tree before he could stumble onto his rear and embarrass himself even further. "Uh, guys?"

Ivan was there, crouching to hover over Matthew's hands worrying his ankle. "Are you hurt?"

Matthew thrashed and kicked his leg. "Ow! Watch how roughly you grab me!"

Ivan jerked away, furrowing his eyebrows. "I am sorry, I did not mean to..." When Matthew did not reply, favoring to experimentally prod his ankle, he let out a high whine of distress.

Irunya rushed to join. "What happened? I heard a cry of pain! Are you all right?!"

"I hurt Matthew!"

"You didn't hurt me," Matthew made sure to pointedly stare into Ivan's eyes so he would not say otherwise. "I leaped out of a tree and landed on my feet the wrong way."

"Leaped out of a tree?" Irunya put a hand to her mouth. "Be more careful next time." She turned to her brother, "Let us go back home so he can rest and we can look at this more properly."

Ivan said, "You have not eaten yet-"

"There is a more pressing matter at the moment, Vanya."

Matthew looked at Ivan expectantly when he hesitated. "I'm sorry, but are you going to carry me? Unless I am going to hobble all the way there."

Irunya offered, "I could carry him if you do not want to, but the sooner we get back, the sooner we can attend to Matthew."

"When you say that," Ivan stepped forward and scooped Matthew into his arms, earning a light whoop of surprise, "it seems like I do not care."

"Then let us hurry." Irunya launched into the air. Her brother followed, adjusting to his added weight with a slight wobble before taking off the squishy ground.

Without pressure on it, the pain in Matthew's ankle was only an achy sensation, and he was grateful for not being put down when they arrived at the house, if at the cost of his dignity. The demons quickly made their way into the building, and Ivan carried him into a long rectangular room with an equally massive slab in the middle that posed as a table. He was not too kind in depositing him on the hard surface, whether intentionally or not.

The siblings exchanged a look as Matthew lifted his leg and dabbed at his foot, wincing at the unpleasant throbbing sensation. "I think I sprained it."

Ivan hovered closer. "What do we do with it?"

Irunya suggested, "Stay off your feet."

"That's for sure," Matthew grumbled. "I need an ice pack."

"Ice?"

"Frozen water," Ivan said. "It is so cold on the surface, that water becomes solid."

Irunya slapped a hand to her bosom. "That is horrible! You poor thing! It must be so hard living with all that...those ice things!"

"Not if you have rock salt." Matthew earned confused looks. "Can I have a damp cloth? Preferably with cool water, please."

"We do not have cool water. Will warm water be all right?"

"If that's what you have," Matthew shrugged. "It's not too bad, I just need to prevent it from blowing up."

"Blowing up? Your foot will...explode?"

Ivan giggled, "Humans use figurative language for everything. I think he meant that his foot will swell."

"Hm, okay. A bit odd..." Irunya tossed a concern glance over her shoulder as she turned to exit the room.

As soon as Irunya left, Ivan dropped his cheerful demeanor. "What happened?"

"What do you mean?"

"You did not come and eat with me. You decided to stay in that tree, and now your foot is broken."

"Not broken...maybe." Matthew shook his head. "There's nothing happening out of the ordinary. I just wasn't hungry for raw meat. I thought we were going to cook or it something, but when you just...dug in, I sort of lost my appetite."

Matthew's stomach gurgled, and Ivan looked down in surprise. "You are now regretting this, yes?"

"A little, but I have snacks in my bag from the convenience store. Remember?"

"Maybe...maybe I should have kept a closer eye on you. I have told you not to wander, but then I wandered and left you alone."

Matthew rolled his eyes. "I don't think I would have wanted to follow you around while you were hunting."

The demon parted his blood-caked lips in a broad smile. "Did I scare you?"

"Oh, yeah," Matthew made sure to keep his face as sincere as possible, "you caught me. The real reason I did not come down right away is because I was glued to my spot in silent terror as I watched you tore apart that poor hog."

Instead of laughing like he usually did, Ivan simply stared, eyes wide with interest. "Did you...did you really-"

"Ugh, no, Ivan! I've seen worse things on TV!"

"Oh."

"Are you disappointed? Did you want me to be scared of you?"

"If I scare you, you will scream and run away, yes? After all the effort to blend in with humans, hide from the angels, and bring you down to my home...I would never want that."

"Hm," Matthew sprung a smile, "okay, you got me."

Ivan beamed. "Two-to-one."

"Oh, hush."

"I will not be hush-hush right now." Ivan grasped both of his wrists and lowered himself to kneel, "Matthew, if there is something you like to say, then tell me, okay?"

Matthew flinched from the dried blood on Ivan's hands. "Okay?"

Ivan lightly insisted, "People do not often tell me what is wrong when something is wrong. I think that they think I will get mad, but I get mad when someone does not tell me what is wrong."

"Okay! Jeez." Matthew said more politely, "Is this about my spraining my ankle? It was just an accident, so nobody needs to be blaming themselves or anybody else." He watched Ivan trace circles against the back of his hands with his thumbs, and shyly smiled when their eyes met. "Actually, there is something else..."

Ivan rose to half-stand, half-hover with a great expression of concern.

"You seriously need a bath."

"What? Matthew!" Ivan slug his arms around Matthew's shoulders and rocked side-to-side in a strong fit of laughter.

"Hey!" Matthew squished their cheeks together and playfully seethed, "Crazy demon!"

"Oh, crazy? Am I crazy when I know exactly what I want? Next time, Matthew should hunt with me."

"No way! I would totally mess up everything."

Ivan pulled back, knitting his eyebrows together, "Everything? Why would you say that?"

"Uh, I never hunted before...especially with my bare hands. I wouldn't know what to do."

"I will show you and you will learn. Run with me and get your hands bloody."

"Oh," Matthew breathed, "how...barbaric."

Ivan's fangs poked out from a cheeky grin, and he barely had to lean forward to squish their foreheads together again. The blood did not bother Matthew anymore. He gnawed on his lower lip as his eyes chased the demon's tail sweeping side-to-side before curling in a delighted manner.

Every time he does that, I think for a moment that he's going to kiss me.

If I weren't such a coward...

Someone stepped with purpose on the stone floors, and they both turned their heads to the disturbance. Irunya gawked with big blue eyes, "Oh! I...um, I have the cloth you asked for." She did not budge, and her wings gave a twitch, "If I am interrupting-"

Matthew clamped his hands on his lap, so they would not go anywhere else. "I'll take it, thanks!"

Irunya glanced to her brother, but he took his gaze to the floor and backed away. "Here, let me help you." She set the rag on the table and knelt down to tug on Matthew's sneaker. He yelped and almost kicked her in the face. "Oh, no! What did I do? I am sorry, Matthew-"

"No, no! It's okay. I got it." Matthew shook his head and picked at his shoe laces.

"Oh," Irunya seemed hesitant to relax. "Will you be all right?"

"Walking is going to be a pain," Matthew eagerly snatched the cloth and pressed it to his foot. It was tepid.

Ivan gleefully suggested, "You should be carried everywhere!"

Irunya's eyes twinkled in amusement, "That reminds me when Father had carried me when I almost twisted my leg all the way back! You screamed whenever he picked me up. I think it frightened you, or at least made you jealous."

"Yes." Ivan affixed that blank expression again as he turned away, "I need to clean myself and change clothes."

Irunya and Matthew watched him hurry away, and the she-demon let out a heavy sigh, "Oh, Vanya, I want to be your friend, too."

"That's...that's not a good thing? Doesn't he like his own parents?"

"They're dead."

"Oh! I'm so sorry-"

"It may have happened when he was just a boy, but it is difficult to talk about." Tears snuck through Irunya's lashes. "Even now."

"Then I won't-"

"Not that he ever..." Whatever she was going to say, Irunya shook her head, "Oh, forget all of this! I shouldn't...it is a happy time. Ivan is happy. I shall hope it lasts."

That did not make Matthew feel better, like, at all. "Is...is he usually...not happy?"

Irunya turned to glance up and around the ceiling. "Oh, no, no, I'm sure you make him happy. It is...there is..." Her pretty face scrunched up as her hands vaguely swirled in the air, "It is a surprise every time I talk to him. Is he sad? Is he angry at something? At me? Is he having a good moment?

"After a while, it always seems like all of that...that 'stuff' comes back to the front of his thoughts. Do you know?"

"What stuff?"

"You see how he sleeps. Often, he does not."

"N-no, I don't really..."

Irunya gazed at Matthew for a long moment. Her eyes went wide as her mouth popped open, "What?! You have not known each other for that long? Oh! I...I am sorry! I am so sorry! I hope I just did not ruin everything between you two-"

"No, Irunya! You didn't! Please," Matthew slowly waved a hand to get her to calm down, "it's all right. I...I've noticed a few things about that...I think. He...well, I did something that...startled him. I-it was stupid, I shouldn't have done it, but-"

Irunya clamped a surprisingly tough hand onto his shoulder. "What did he do?"

"I jumped on him when he was sleeping, and he...he kind of freaked out?"

Staring. Irunya slowly retracted. "Oh. He did not snap at you? Or..."

"Hurt me?" Matthew guessed sourly. "No. Like I said, it was stupid, and I know better now not to surprise him like that again. It's all right. I can respect that."

"You...? Ah!" Irunya rapidly blinked, as if on the verge of tears again, but sprouted a big smile. "I am so glad! He is very eager to be close to you, and you let him, so I just thought that you already knew...either way, I am glad you are not scared. You are not scared, correct?"

Matthew turned his head away to drop the warm cloth on the table, and stared at the wooden groves across the surface for a quiet moment. "No, Irunya. I'm not scared."

Irunya swished a clawed hand in front of her face. "Whew! Good. No matter what, you should never be scared." Suddenly sweet, she asked, "Should I wet your cloth again?"

Matthew blinked like he was stupid. "Um, yeah, actually, that would help. Thanks." His half smile immediately fell as soon as her back turned on him. "Ivan," he murmured to himself. A sprained ankle was pathetic.

"You utter dickwad."

Matthew jumped, twisting around the table to see who randomly growled. "What the...uh...hi, Natalia." His voice dropped beneath the other sister's glare, "How long have you been-"

She bared her teeth and cut him off with loud hiss. Matthew furrowed his eyebrows at her, and she narrowed her eyes right back at him. "What, you think I am going to bite you?"

"We haven't been formally introduced-"

"I know who you are," she seethed, "human."

Matthew grimaced as goose bumps pimpled his arms. "What do you have against humans?"

"From what I heard? Too much. Your kind is loud, messy, fickle, destructive...and Brother thought it was a good idea to bring one down here?"

"Um, okay, I admit some of us are like that, but you just met me. Have I been loud, messy and what not in the short time I been here?"

Natalia's lips turned up in the slightest. "Not yet. We will see. I will be watching you, and you will not hurt my brother in any way, shape, or form."

"I wasn't even thinking of doing that!"

"Of course not. I will rip your penis off if you do."

Matthew gaped, but nothing came out.

Natalia curtly nodded, taking fear as a sufficient answer. "Good." She flicked long, pale hair over her shoulder, sending one last glare his way before sauntering out of the dining hall.

What is this, good cop, bad cop, demon style? Matthew nonchalantly folded his arms over his groin. He did not look up to acknowledge Irunya's return. She stopped a few steps before him with her nose in the air. "Was Natalia through here recently?"

Matthew bobbled his head.

"I wonder why she did not say hello," Irunya murmured thoughtfully. She gasped, "Here's your cloth!"

"Thanks," Matthew took the rag, and pressed it to his ankle. "Ugh, looks like the swelling's not going down. I'm going to need an ice pack."

"We don't have any of those."

"Yeah, I kind of figured. I going to have to go back up to the surface for one." A little brighter and less threatened, Matthew smiled, "It's okay, Irunya. You done enough."

"Okay? Okay!" Irunya giggled, revealing equally sharp teeth as any-demon-else, "You take care of my brother when you're up there. I heard the angels are vindictive as ever."

"You bet!"

"Mm-hm! Ivan told me that you saved him from them when he flew up there!"

"I wouldn't call it saving, but..."

"But what?"

"Oh, nothing, I was just..." Matthew shrugged and laughed at himself. "I don't really know."

"Ha-ha, aw, you are so cute!" Irunya suddenly sniffed the air. She spun around, announcing joyfully, "Brother, we were just talking about you!"

Matthew mentally face-palmed.

Ivan slowed in the middle of the doorway, giving Matthew a long stare. "Oh, you were?"

"No, no! Nothing bad! I insist!" Irunya waved her hands. "Is that right, Matthew?"

"Please don't put me in the spotlight."

Both demons laughed, and Matthew ducked his head. A pair of familiar boots came into view, and he glanced up, to Ivan. "Oh, no, your foot...does that hurt?"

"A little," Matthew admitted. He already knew it looked ugly.

Irunya said, "He keeps saying he needs ice."

"We do not have ice."

"That is what I said."

"We need ice."

"Brother, must you leave again so soon?"

Ivan repeated, "We need ice."

Matthew nodded, "Yeah, and my brother might be ripping his hair out in worry. I kind of snuck away without telling him where I was going."

Irunya put her hands on her hips. "Ivan, was that your idea?"

"Matthew agreed to it!"

She handed the stare to Matthew, who shrunk under her gaze. "You two need to take care of his injury as soon as possible. It will not get any better with him posing as the dining hall's center piece."

A.N.- What would licking the bark do? Maybe it would make your tongue tingle for an uncomfortable amount of time. Maybe it could slowly peel away all your taste buds. Imagination is an awfully wonderful thing. :)