Chapter 7: Slowly Stops The Ache

"Stan?" Styx asked curiously, gently using a damp cloth from the shower across another scrape on Blitz.

"Yeah." Blitz winced but smiled. "I dunno. Why the fuck not Stan?"

"I guess that's true, too." The sinner agreed. "Still. You could have just ran away. I'd rather have a missing car than you get found dead."

"That's not gonna happen, babe." The imp reassured, leaning his head against his partner before Styx corrected his head upright to continue addressing the wounds. Blitz grunted in disappointment and discomfort at the dressings wrapped around the graze on his side. "Did that cat have to make this shit so fucking tight?"

"You were shot." Styx said. "Of course it does. Can't have water getting in the wound. We'll replace it afterwards. How did you survive getting grazed anyway? You're being too casual about this."

"You get used to it." Blitz smiled as he saw his new bird perched on the counter through the bathroom doorway. "For me and Stan it's a sign of fear or something. Y'know, give those bitches something to cry about other than your knife at their throat." The demon quickly lifted his hand from, his sharpened claws extending from his hand. The grip on his gun, and grip on reality, had been worn down from years of murder. He laughed despite the anguish of his wounds as he shifted. "I was always a fan of being up close and personal anyway."

Styx grabbed another cloth. They rested a hand on Blitz's shoulder, recieving a sigh of contempt and pain from the imp. The hand trailed further in response, resting soundly below the waist of the demon under the water. The sinner took time in assuring their work was good enough to keep their partner alive, despite their amateur nature with harsher injuries. Styx recalled a night with one their old loves on the surface world: The sinner was completely inexperienced with skateboard. However, as their former partner insisted that they learn, a day of watching Styx struggling with the basics of pushing forward, they met their demise with the sport when a sloped road and an incoming car almost took them to Hell early, and refused help from anyone. In response their partner has dressed the large scrape on their arm. Styx could still feel the disappointment of their failure at the activity enter the room before pausing and tracing a finger across a spike on Blitz's back. They looked at the white accents of the imp, the bruises and scars drawing an almost purple hue from mixing colors of blood and skin.

"I was never good at skateboarding. Got pushed down the road by my ex." Styx said. "Maybe this Dom, whoever they were, was like my ex coming back to push you down the hill. Except... now it's a car instead of a skateboard."

"The fuck are you on about?" Blitz asked with a raised eyebrow before another burning of a wound struck. "Ow, fuck. Watch the ass!"

"Sorry." Styx said. "I'm trying to say I know how you feel - You know the world is against you, but you try to push on anyway. It's not long until life starts sending things your way to try and stop you. This was your ex pushing you down the hill with a skateboard."

"Is that how you ended up here?" Blitz asked curiously. "Murdered your ex for making you skateboard?"

Styx let out a chuckle. The imp turned and responded with a kiss, as did Styx as the sinner follow the path of his hand with another after a generous amount of time gazing into each other's eyes. Feelings of yearning for a path of nonviolence poured from their two hearts into an insufferable waterfall of blood in their souls. Could a demon claim a soul if they had never been born? Styx did not know. The ideas of kindness and being a able to help others were often associated with the soul. Religions would fall if it was known what lied after death, and Styx was amused at the thought while also being disturbed at themselves. They pressed their lips against the imp's, recieving stifles sounds of satisfaction before Stan lett out a screech.

Blitz gave a happy grin. "Fuck off, Stan. I'm falling in love."

"I tend to have that effect on people." Styx returned with their own smile. A frown suddenly formed. "Just try not to die again. Wouldn't want Sir Pentious taking the car back."

"Oh yeah." Blitz said. "Forgot about that weird bitch. Heard anything from him?"

"He wants to talk to you directly." Styx said. "Me and Erosa talked while you were out joyriding. Said he saw the whole thing at the bar unfold the other day. Shit, how long has it been?"

Blitz sighed, taking the time underneath the falling water to think about the events. The unruly fists of darkness pounding at the doors of fate, gesturing to their demise as if it was amusing. Sivah - The imp did not feel any fear towards the wielder of darkness. Each demon has a story to them, whether it be one of royal blood being pushed to the forefront of unfair rulings, groomed as an heir rather than a loved one; or those never given the chance to understand what love was as they were cast away to the nearest underpaid shelter in a collection of neglect that only got replaced. The line to the ride of torment never ended for the lower class of Hell, and Blitz clutched a fist as he realized just how unfair his world was. A child left to die was a child left to raise themselves, but a child left to their unlawful parents was a ticking time bomb unchecked. These bombs would explode at any chance they got, and we're often ignored by those just as low on the ladder. Sivah was not royalty, nor were they on the level of imps and hellhounds. They were a collection of desperate attempts to fit in. Dom was a collection of desperate attempts to fit in... Blitz was a collection of desperate attempts to either live or die, and the demon had no qualms with either ending to his story. Abandonment of ideals was not a disease, it was the cured state.

"Blitz?" Styx asked, snapping their partner out of their hypnotic state before holding him closer. "You okay?

Blitz rested against Styx's chest, releasing a sigh and closing his eyes. He could feel the familiar burning residing behind his mind, and curled his face into that of mourning for the loss of his innocence. The imp broke down, releasing a stuffled cry and releasing his desperation to the world. Styx remained silent. The sinner moved his hand to the upper back of Blitz, pressing him into their chest, and the imp obliged by holding on tightly in an attempt to stay with one of the last good things he had.

"Hey, hey, hey." Styx softly whispered near the imp, placing a kiss on one of his horns as they softly stroked the side of their face. "It's okay. We're here, we're okay."

"Are we?" Blitz roughly gasped between tears, looking up at Styx with red eyes. "Are we ever okay? I've fucked up so much. Why do you care about me?"

Styx smiled, giving the imp a kiss on the lips as reassurance. "Why shouldn't I?"

"I'm just a stupid imp. Nobody cares about us. We're just shit thrown to birds like Stan. Fuck you, Stan!"

Stan cooed softly from the doorway.

"You're right. I'm a fraud. I'll never be able to meet anyone without bringing them down my fucked shit level."

Styx reached over to turn off the water. Carefully, they held Blitz hand and lead the duo out before producing a towel and carefully going over the imp in preparation for new dressings. The sinner smiled as he wiped the tears from the imp's eyes. "I get to do the bandages next."

Blitz sniffled, returning the favor and beginning to dry his partner with a soft smile. "Why didn't you do it before?"

"I didn't know how." Styx admitted. "But now I kinda get it, and I want to try it out if you're okay with that."

Blitz stood, setting the towel on the side of the tub before leaning in for another kiss. Styx responded by holding him close, and the demon returned the dance of hands now caressing them both.

"Wouldn't have it any other way." Blitz said happily.